For the Love of Liberty
by theredheadedleague
Summary: As the war rages, Ben brings another friend into the ring, but this new addition changes everything. With the past coming back to help and haunt him, Ben is forced to decide where - and with who - his loyalties lie.
1. The Ring

"You're a spy?"

"Ssh!" Anna Strong pulled her friend into the back room of her husband's tavern, which had been taken over when Selah had been imprisoned on the _Jersey_. "Grace, please, not out loud. Not out there. Meet me later on tonight, I'll tell you everything."

Grace Hopwood had been friends with Anna since childhood. She'd grown up in Setauket, becoming a maid for a man named Richard Woodhull, the local magistrate, after her father had died and her mother moved away to live in her oldest brother's house. It had only been recently that she'd seen Anna sneaking around. Twice now, on her way to town from the Woodhull house in the morning, or on the way back late at night, she had seen Anna hanging laundry at odd hours. She'd hidden behind a crop of trees to see a man arrive in the closest coves one night, a man she hadn't seen for years.

That night, Anna met her behind the tavern with a darkened lantern. Grace had been waiting for a few moments, lurking in the darkness and thinking over what she was going to say. Anna spared her the effort by explaining everything right away. "I'm the signal. When I hang certain pieces of clothing, they know where to go. I'm sorry, I can't tell you too much -"

Grace cut her off, grabbing her friend's hand. "Is it Caleb?"

"What?"

Grace was insistent. "It's Caleb who looks for the signal and sails over. Caleb Brewster. I haven't seen him in ages, Anna! It just makes sense. I know he's a smuggler, and who knows the shoreline of Setauket better than he does?"

Anna nodded. "Yes. He's the courier."

"Who else is involved?" Grace pressed. "Is it all our friends?"

Anna pursed her lips, thinking before divulging the secret identities of the men involved. "Ben started all of this, Ben Tallmadge. I know, you haven't seen him or heard from him in a long time either. Abe's gotten involved too. What happens is Abe finds out secrets from his father, from the soldiers, from anywhere he can get them. He has me signal for Caleb, who brings the information across to Ben. We haven't been involved in this for long, but it's already getting dangerous. Abe nearly got caught once."

Grace made a split-second decision that would end up changing her life. "I want to be involved."

"You're sure?" Anna asked, looking her friend in the eye. She could tell that she was sincere. "This is a lot to devote yourself to, you have to know that. It's not just the games we played as children."

"I don't have anything to lose, do I?" Grace questioned, trying to convince her of the brilliance of this idea. "I'm already working for a Loyalist, and I live there with the soldiers they're quartering. I'm always around them, Anna. Who would suspect a woman like me? I'm a maid - I clean. I'm not seen or heard. Even when I'm in the room, no one pays attention. People never notice maids. They continue on with their conversations as usual, they leave their letters out to dry, they put their secrets out in the open. No one questions a maid."

Anna sighed, finally assenting. "I'll tell Caleb tonight. He can talk to Ben for you, since a letter wouldn't be too safe. We'll see what he has to say about this. Just be fully sure that you want to get involved. Once you start, you can't go back on this."

Two days later, Grace held a dim lantern, standing in the middle of an old barn outside of town. The door creaked open, a familiar figure walking in. She hadn't seen him in ages, since he had signed up for the revolution and gone off to war. "Ben!" She tried to whisper, running up to throw her arms around him. "How have you been? I haven't seen you in years. I tried to write, but the letters were stopped, and I… it's been too long. I'm sorry. I've forgotten myself, I really should..."

"Alright, alright." He sat down on a bale of hay, telling her to take a seat. She set the lantern between them, sitting down across from her schoolyard friend. They'd stuck with Caleb, Abe, and Anna, even when they were all getting in trouble together. They'd grown up beside each other, and before he had died, Grace's father was lining things up for her to marry "the Tallmadge boy". Well, that was until he ran off and joined the Continental Army. She'd always had a sweet spot for him, though, even when he had been forced out of the city. "Anna says you want to work with us."

"As I told her," Grace explained, "I live and work in the home of a Loyalist magistrate. It would be easy for me to get information from him and the soldiers staying there, and easy for me to pass it on to Caleb. No one notices when a maid is in the room. We fade into the background. I could quite literally walk into an officers' meeting and no one would notice, as long as I kept dusting and polishing the furniture."

"You're sure that you want to do this?" Ben asked, analyzing her intently. "This means that you could end up on a prison ship if you get caught. A prison ship at best."

They both turned as the door creaked open again, Abe appearing in the moonlight. He closed the door quietly, coming over to where his friends sat. "Sorry I'm late. Mary just fell asleep."

"You're early," Ben told him, shaking his head. He turned back to Grace, holding his hands in the air in a gesture of defeat. "Abe, Grace here is going to be working with you, getting information from inside your father's house while you're away. He's planning to go to New York City, pretending to be studying the law while he's spying," he explained to her. "While Abe is away, you'll be in charge of getting information to Caleb from inside the Woodhull home."

"You're saying yes?" Grace beamed, looking between the two men.

"I'm saying yes," he assented, trying not to voice his reluctance. "I'll have to get this to the general, but otherwise, you should be able to function as a spy from now on. I can get you a code book soon. I'll have one sent over with Caleb, since I can't make the trip here often enough. We all have code names and numbers, and I'll make sure that I have you added to all of the copies. Abe can run you through the basics." He stood, heading for the door. "Now I have to get back to my post before anyone notices that I'm gone. Good luck, you two."

Grace and Abe waited for Ben to leave, giving him time to make his way down the road and into the darkened forest that he had emerged from earlier. Eventually, they took up their lanterns and began to head for home. "This is dangerous," Abe warned her as they walked. "Your life isn't the only one riding on your success."

"I know. We have the rest of the ring, and the rest of the cause, to think about," she gravely acknowledged, looking around to make sure they were not about to be stopped by a Tory patrol. As they passed what used to be the Strong tavern, she confided, "I've suspected Anna for a bit now. But all of you? All of our old friends, in a spy ring right under our noses? How did I not know?"

"For God's sake, don't say that aloud," Abe hissed. "Not around here."

"Sorry," she smiled apologetically. "I have to get used to this."

"I'll tell you what. Ben's invited me to a," he lowered his voice, checking to make sure they were alone on the road, "a rebel ball down in Philadelphia. Clearly, I can't leave York City without attracting attention from my father, but he knows that you have family in Pennsylvania. If you tell him that one of them is ill, he'll let you go for a few days. If you want to go, you can go with Ben. You'll learn a lot more about what we do from him than from me. It should give you time to figure out your role in all of this. Besides, I know you need more time to talk to him, after everything that's happened and everything that's been stopped in its tracks because of the war."

"Alright," she nodded as he stopped outside of the Woodhull home. "I'll tell Ben via Caleb. The first time I pass on information. But I'm not going to divulge every detail of our discussions to you and Anna, at least not yet." Abe shook his head, smiling at her before going into the house. Grace waited until she saw his lantern go out upstairs before she slipped into the house, going to bed with a head full of thoughts about rebel spies, revolution, and the fateful choice that she had made.


	2. A Rebel Ball

Grace had been waiting in the darkness with a dying lantern for a while. She was starting to wonder if she was hiding out in the wrong cove when a small boat landed close by, more silently than she had ever heard a boat land. Caleb Brewster hopped out, giving her a huge bear hug before asking, "You've finally decided to join us, eh?"

"Yeah, it's about time I did, isn't it? Since everyone else I grew up with is in on it," she smiled, handing him a note. "That's for Ben. I've hobbled together the code I got from Abe's books."

"I'll pass it on to him. Oh, but this is for you." He fished a small pamphlet out of his coat, handing it over to her. "It's our code book. Means you're officially a part of the team now. Hide it well, okay?"

She nodded firmly. "Not a problem."

"I've got to be running, but does this mean you and Tallboy -"

Grace shook her head. "Caleb, I don't know. We haven't said much to each other about anything other than the ring. But I'm sure he'll tell you if anything happens."

They didn't have much of a chance to catch up in the barn, but then again, they never did. It came with the spy work - time was crucial. Caleb had to sail away only moments later, since he was risking capture by the British every second he was on land. Grace crept back into the Woodhull home, stashing the pamphlet under a floorboard in her room as she thought up a story that would let her leave New York - something about sick family, perhaps.

Judge Woodhull had told her to return when her cousin was doing better, wishing her a safe trip and a return in good health. She'd convinced him that Sally, a nonexistent pregnant cousin living outside of Philadelphia, was ill. Her husband was away, serving in His Majesty's Royal Navy, and would probably not be back until after his third child was born. Sally, ill and expecting a child, was helpless on her own. Grace had successfully bought herself two days in Pennsylvania. Even Major Hewlett hadn't asked too many questions, simply telling her to be careful on the roads, since rebels could be hiding anywhere, waiting to attack.

She and Ben traveled for several hours, finally stopping in a small town a few miles from Philadelphia. They didn't talk much, but she could tell that there was a lot that he was thinking about. While the October weather was starting to turn chilly, neither of them was bothered. Instead, they were ready to meet their commanders, Grace excitedly getting ready upstairs with a few other women who had arrived earlier in the day, and meeting Ben in the hall just as the ball was starting.

"Tallmadge!" A distinguished-looking man in a general's uniform waved him over, saying hello and asking how his journey had been. Grace appeared by Ben's side, smiling. "Is this…"

"Grace Hopwood," she curtsied and extended her hand as Ben nodded. "Pleasure to meet you, general."

The general smiled, kissing her hand. "General George Washington. Major Tallmadge here has been telling me about you, and about how you've joined a rather elite group in Setauket, shall we say."

"Yes, sir."

"We're quite proud that you've stepped up," Washington told her as she internally hyperventilated, thinking of the power and majesty, as well as the immense importance, of the man standing in front of her. The revolution rested on his shoulders and bowed at his direction. "Be careful out there, ma'am."

"I will, sir."

Washington excused himself, heading to talk to another general who he had spotted across the crowd. Even at a party, he still had business to attend to. There was a war on, after all. Much of the night went the same way, Grace being introduced to many people who were making the rounds of the party. When the music started up, Ben asked her to dance, whirling Grace onto the dance floor as soon as she accepted. "I've been thinking, and this is the first time we've been able to talk. I know it's been years since I left Setauket, and I should have written to you sooner -"

"Ben, I've been thinking about it too. About the years you missed, about everything that happened," she offered as they spun past Washington, who nodded to them both. "I really am sorry that I gave up on writing to you after my first few letters went unanswered."

"I am the one who should be sorry. I'm sorry I wasn't able to answer you." He sighed, correcting himself. "I actually received one of your letters, but I couldn't bring myself to write back and disappoint you with the news that I was staying with the camp. I'm sure you knew that I wasn't - I'm still not - welcome in Setauket."

"I think, for now, at least, we should try to turn over a new leaf," she proposed. "It's been too long to go right back to where we were, but I'm not opposed to talking like we did when we were friends, like we did before… before."

Ben nodded, saying, "I think that's for the best. We'll see how everything goes. But I know it will be… difficult, with you working for Judge Woodhull."

"We can make things work," she resolved.

They danced to a few songs, but many times, they would stop to talk to someone or be called over by a group of uniformed men, being forced to move off of the dance floor to have a conversation about military matters. Grace met more generals, colonels, majors, lieutenants, and men of other ranks whose names and titles she forgot, than she had ever seen in one room before, even living in a town swimming with British troops. When Ben was again called away by Washington and another group of men, Grace excused herself and took the skirts of her evergreen dress in her hand, heading across the ballroom to find a seat and take a moment to rest.

She found where a half-dozen small tables were set up for people to eat and rest across the room. Not many people were sitting. Instead, they had flocked to the dance floor or were mingling with the other officers, the women either gushing at the highest-ranking men they could find or in groups gossiping and admiring each others' dresses. Grace looked around, seeing a young man in a decorated military uniform sitting alone, wistfully watching the buzz of the party as he sipped his drink. She decided to sit down across from him at the table he had claimed in the corner. "Hello," she smiled, taking her seat. "I couldn't help but notice that you've been alone over here for quite a while. Are you alright?"

"Yes, yes," he nodded, trying to suppress his heavy accent. "I am fine."

"You're not from the colonies, are you?" She asked sympathetically, the man concentrating on what she was saying. "You're translating in your head, right? You've got quite a high rank, though. You must be doing great things for our country."

He smiled, his dark eyebrows unknitting as he broke his concentration and admitted, "I am not sure what zat word is. My English is not good. I am sorry."

"No, your English is very good," she encouraged, beaming. "Are you French? Your accent - ah, your voice - sounds like it."

He nodded. "I am from France, oui."

" _I can speak a bit of French, just not very well_." He positively beamed as she spoke in his native language. " _I've only had a few years of it, before my brother left school and moved away to study the law. He taught me everything I know."_

"I would much prefer English, mademoiselle. I must learn it if I am to stay here and be of help to ze general," he told her, taking a sip of his drink. "What is your name?"

"Grace Hopwood," she said. "And yours?"

The man smiled, kissing her hand. "Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de Lafayette. My honor, mademoiselle."

"That's quite a name. May I just call you Lafayette?"

"If zat is what you wish. May I call you…ah, Gracie?" He frowned for a second, trying to pronounce it correctly.

She smiled again. He was quite sweet. "My name is Grace, but you may call me Gracie if you wish. It sounds pretty the way you say it. Beautiful," she clarified.

"No, no," he smiled, "you are beautiful."

"Thank you. May I ask why you're sitting here alone? If that's not impertinent."

"Ze general does not speak more zan a few words of French, like most of ze guests 'ere. And everyone wants to talk to him. I cannot speak much English quite yet. Zey do not seem to enjoy ah, waiting for my English."

"Well I think you speak fine English," she defended. "They just aren't as patient as they should be. They simply do not take the time to listen, since they're always thinking of what they want to say next. Again, if that isn't impertinent."

"Back in France, many do not know your language. Ze Americans who have come to France learn quickly. Monsieurs Jefferson and Franklin know ze language well. When I came here to offer my assistance, zey were, ah," he paused, searching for a word as a young man buzzing with restless energy came to sit beside them, "hesitant because I did not know much English. Bonsoir, Monsieur Alexander."

The man introduced himself to Grace as an aide de camp to Washington, immediately turning away from her and launching into a detailed discussion about troop movements with Lafayette. Though Grace thought she had mastered her fair share of the French language, this man made her look like an amateur, speaking nearly as quickly as the Frenchman did. She followed most of their discussion, finally leaning in and adding, " _Wouldn't it be a better idea if you had a battalion on the other side of the hill as well? Otherwise, your right flank would be exposed, unless that is your plan, and you mean to march them into a corner_."

They both turned to her, the aide de camp looking astonished. "You understood all of that?"

"I did," she nodded, looking between the two men. "I've been sitting here having a conversation with the marquis for a while now. However, if I were you, I would try English, since he's trying to learn."

Not entirely knowing how to process this woman's knowledge, he shook his head, standing and saying, "I have to get back to the general. But take care with that one, Lafayette. She's smart. Reminds me of Mrs. Church."

Grace watched him go before turning back to her companion, who told her, "He is really a nice man, just frustrated because Congress is cutting down ze supplies again, and he has to answer to zem and also to ze troops."

"I understand," she nodded, watching the aide de camp cross the dance floor and say hello to a woman in blue. "Not many people are willing to give women a chance at all, and they are amazed when we understand things more complex than this season's dress patterns, especially when they are about their military."

Lafayette smiled sympathetically. "It is ze same 'ere with immigrants. But we are at a party, non? Zis is not a discussion for a ball such as zis. Would you like to dance?"

She accompanied him out into the center of the ballroom as a new song started. Hours later, as the ball was winding down, Ben found the couple still whirling around the dance floor, chattering away in a mixture of French and English, switching languages whenever they stumbled upon a word one of them didn't know. When the song stopped, they joined him by where the bar had been set up, Tallmadge nodding respectfully at the marquis and joyfully telling him, "Thank you for keeping her occupied while General Washington and I were busy. Grace, are you ready? We have a long ride ahead of us. It's about time to grab your coat."

"Just a moment, Ben." She turned back to her dance partner, thanking him for, "such a lovely evening. I pray you have a safe journey back to camp with the general."

"And I pray zat you and Monsieur Tallmadge have a safe journey home. I will write you in York City - Setauket - Mademoiselle Gracie." He kissed her cheek, bidding her goodnight.

Ben promptly took her arm, leading her outside as their carriage was being brought over from the barn. Just as they turned out of the door, gracefully thanking their hosts, Grace glanced back, Lafayette giving a small wave. She smiled and nodded back. Ben helped her into the carriage, talking to the driver for a moment before joining her inside. She passed him a blanket, which he gratefully wound around himself to keep out the rapidly cooling night air. "I see you've made quite an impression with the Marquis de Lafayette," he noted as they began to move, adding in a terrible accent, "And zat he's made quite ze impression on you, Mademoiselle Gracie."

"Don't mock him, Ben." She hit her friend's arm with part of her blanket, settling into the seat across from him and looking out of the window. "He's a smart man, and will probably be fairly helpful for the cause."

"Well, while you were busy dancing and creating a liaison with the French, I convinced Washington that you'll be an asset to the cause. He fully approves of you and he'll be expecting a report soon. Put it in a cypher, sympathetic stain, whatever you want, as long as it can't be detected by anyone who might intercept it."

"Ben?"

"Hmm?"

"You're his spymaster, aren't you? You're the one in charge of Setauket, at least. That means General Washington's probably got you in charge of more," she deduced.

Ben nodded, looking out the window at the countryside rushing past. "I'm not supposed to tell anyone very much, but I can trust you. Our little ring is just a part of it. There are sources all over New York, everyone from tailors to socialites feeding us information. And now you're a part of it."


	3. First Messages

_Grace,_

 _I will be contacting you through different channels shortly, but there is good news on the horizon. Our esteemed friend has agreed to your plan, and, even though I have my reservations, I am glad to extend the offer to you. There will be more to follow._

 _In regards to the other matter that we discussed, I believe it would be best to start off as we did back in school, back before everything happened between us and between the colonies and England. A lot has changed in the last few years, and I hope that we like the people we have become, but we may never know, not until we become more acquainted with the people we are now._

 _I do hope to see you soon, though._

 _Ben_

Grace tucked the letter into the pocket sewn into her dress and got to work writing out a cipher for Caleb to pick up. She didn't have much time, since she had stopped to read the letter, having hidden it away under a loose floorboard earlier in the day, when she had picked up the post while she was in town. Caleb would be getting to the cove that Anna had designated near 10 o'clock, and it was rapidly approaching a quarter past nine. She'd have written it down earlier, but she had been forced to repeat the message in her head for hours while serving dinner for Major Hewlett and his guests. After the guests had left, she'd been sent into Setauket proper to fetch the letters for Richard Woodhull and the major. Of course, she'd picked her own letter up from the postmaster at the same time, but had no time to read it, since Judge Woodhull needed one of his coats repaired.

She and Ben had been writing for a few months now, since he had been traveling with his command. With the war on, there was no guarantee that they would ever see each other again, but they enjoyed each other's letters immensely. Grace looked forward to them, even if they arrived only every few weeks or so. They would make her smile, and she hoped her letters did the same for him. Hopefully even half of them reached him.

Someone knocked on her door as she was writing, Grace quickly shoving the paper into a drawer, hiding the bottle of sympathetic stain just as the door opened. "Abraham!" She sighed in relief as she saw him peer through the cracked door and began taking everything out of the desk once again. "You scared me half to death! Well, come on in." He did as he was told, Grace taking the sympathetic stain out and continuing to write as they spoke. "Keep quiet, though."

"I don't have long before Mary realizes that I'm gone, but you're going to see Caleb tonight, aren't you?" he asked. "That's what you're writing for?"

"Yes, why?"

He took a folded note from his coat, handing it over. "Give him that from me. That's everything I've gotten from the last week in New York. And tell him hello for me as well. I haven't seen him for a while, since you and Anna are running everything back here in Setauket while I'm away."

"You're going back tomorrow, right?"

"I am." Abe nodded, looking over her shoulder at the drying stain, the words disappearing nearly as fast as she could write them. "I'll be gone for another fortnight or so. I'm testing ways of passing information from the city itself, but this way is safer, as long as I can get the messages out. So far they've been good at letting me back to visit my family. And so long as they are, I'll be back."

Grace made sure to pass his message on to Caleb when she met him, racing into the planned cove just as he arrived. "You're a bit late," Caleb laughed, giving her a hug and securing the messages in his coat pocket. "But you can still run like a wild horse."

"Sorry, I was talking with Abe. He says to tell you hello, and that his studies are going well."

"Have I got some messages for you," Caleb began, taking a seat on a tree stump near his boat. "You're not going to like all of them, though. First, Ben wants me to tell you, Anna, and Abe that you're doing well. The general's happy with your information, I guess. Either way, Tallboy seemed happy with it. Second, Ben gave me a message for you." He gave her a piece of paper that had been clumsily sealed with red wax, opened, and then re-sealed with white wax. "Says it's important. He got the letter and thought you needed to read it."

"It's just for me?" She asked as she took the note, clarifying, "It isn't for Abe, Anna, and I?"

Caleb shook his head, gritting his teeth. "Says it's especially for you. He also says to tell you he's sorry, and that he'll see to it that you can go somewhere if you want to. No clue what that means, but he was serious about it."

Grace nodded gravely. "Thank you. I should let you go. They've started patrolling the rivers around here at night, at least according to what I've overheard from Major Hewlett." She hugged him as he stepped into the boat, pushing it away from shore. "Be careful, Caleb. Tell Ben thank you for me."

"Ben… Tallboy misses you. I can tell, when I see him writing to you. He tries to hide it, but… well, I don't know, he's Ben. But you be careful yourself." He waved before beginning to row away, the faint light of his lantern disappearing into the mist.

Grace rushed back to the Woodhull home to read the letter by candlelight in the confines of her small room. Racing through town, she could feel the weight of it in her pocket, just knowing that something had happened. The message, scrawled in Ben's cramped handwriting, fit a whole lot on the tiny scrap of paper.

 _I miss you. Our letters bring me so much joy and make me think of old times. I will do my best to visit you soon. Until then, please keep writing. - Ben_

She smiled to herself, thinking of Ben as she went to bed. Across the colonies, he was opening one of her letters, reading it over and wishing that he was there with her at Whitehall. He dreamed of working in the town and coming to visit every few days, stopping by for lunch or to borrow books, standing at the window or by the laundry lines until she acknowledged him. Laughing together over the follies of the people in town, or discussing liberty and what it could mean. Rolling over on his cot, Ben thought of how he had had these same dreams when he went away to Yale, and how he had hated leaving her and the rest of their friends. But no, these were just letters. He didn't want to get his hopes up too much.

Grace woke the next day to piles of work, since Judge Woodhull and Major Hewlett were having a dinner party that would bring a ton of redcoats into their home. She would also have to make sure Thomas was ready while Mary got dressed, keeping him out of his mother's way. It seemed like the work never ended. But at least she could think of Ben, who, despite saying he had wanted to go back in time, still wrote her letters approaching those he would write her from Yale, when he missed her terribly.

That evening, as Judge Woodhull, Major Hewlett, and their guests sat around the dinner table, Grace moved about the room, serving more wine and taking plates as the men and women finished. With the wine flowing liberally, some of the soldiers were talking in not-so-hushed tones about troop movements and where they were planning on attacking next. Abe and Grace shared a look, Grace nodding nearly imperceptibly, as if to say, "I heard. I'll get it to Caleb." She would jot things down when she had a chance, and together, she and Abe would remember almost all of it.

Going down into the cellar to get another bottle of wine, Grace paused on the stairs, Abe joining her after excusing himself to check on Thomas, who was sleeping upstairs. He snuck into the wine cellar, hugging her and saying hello. "It's good to see you again."

"Good to see you too," she whispered. "How was New York City?"

"I've passed a lot of things on to Ben, and I'm scoping out another agent in the city. We might have a Culper Junior, if all goes well. Oh, did Ben give you a code name yet?"

She frowned, hitting him in the arm like they were kids again, gossiping behind the school with the others. "No, I'm still just the woman who sends in tips from here. Who knows, maybe I'll just end up with a number. I've been signing everything as 'the woman'. I'll be happy with that, as long as I get to keep helping you and the rest of the ring."

"Have you got the message Hewlett let slip?"

"I've already gotten it written down. I'll get it sorted out in a bit." Grace nodded. "I'll tell Anna to signal Caleb tomorrow. For now, though, I've got to encode it and clean up from this dinner. Dinner first, of course. Actually, I need to get back to it." She gestured with the bottle, saying, "The men want their drinks."

Abe let her go, dashing upstairs to actually check on Thomas before coming back to the gathering, whispering to Mary that, "Sprout's sleeping soundly. I almost couldn't drag myself back down here… He's grown up so much recently."

The next morning, Grace was sent into town to request a list of groceries that they'd run out of after the dinner. While waiting for the grocer, she ventured over to the old Strong Tavern, since taken over and bought out in the wake of Selah Strong's arrest. Anna was busy working, but stepped aside long enough to ask how her trip had been. "Fine, fine." She didn't want to divulge too much in present company, considering the tavern was full of British troops. "I need you to signal Caleb for me. Second cove."

"Of course," Anna nodded, grabbing a pitcher from the bar. Her seriousness broke into a smile as she added, "Hold on, let's see if I've got the line of gossip right. Abe tells me that Caleb says that Ben has started writing to you without talking about the war, and without bits of code between the lines. Are the rumors true, or is it just the boys' gossip again?"

Grace had to wait by the bar while Anna was called away to refill a table's glasses, but upon her return, she immediately launched into a defense. "It probably isn't like at all like Abe has it. Or Caleb, or whoever. He and I have been writing, yes, but it's nothing… close."

Anna leaned in to whisper in her friend's ear. "So you're going to become his fiancee again? Or is there a title for the wife of an officer?" she joked.

"Anna!" Grace laughed, looking around the tavern before she answered. "He's hardly asked me to marry him!"

"But if he did?" she insisted, wiping the bar off with a rag. "Would you accept?"

Grace smiled, thinking of Ben, of all of the time that they had shared walking in the garden or reading to each other or just sitting up late and talking about anything and everything, back in the past. And how she wrote to him now. "I fancy that I would."

That evening, Grace was waiting in the cove that Anna had signaled for Caleb to sail to, her lantern darkened and the coded note clutched in her hand. She hadn't seen Caleb for the better part of two months because of her adventure in Pennsylvania, not since it had begun to get cooler and the leaves had begun falling from the trees. Pulling her cloak tightly around her shoulders, Grace wondered how sailors could stand working in the winter. Half of them must be frozen most of the time, especially if they were fishermen, with their hands on icy nets and in the water all of the time.

She heard the movement of Caleb's boat before she saw it. She turned to look away from the road to see if she could spy him through the fog. The small vessel hit the shore and Caleb jumped out, hugging her joyfully. "There you are! I've had to deal with seeing old Abe's face every time Anna signalled. I haven't seen your mug in ages. Where've you been?"

"I've been working for the magistrate. He's been going mad getting ready for this dinner, and Anna's been covering things fairly well for me," she laughed, handing over her note. "I'm sure you heard all about it from Ben."

"Ah, Tallboy's always got a rumor or two, but then again, he's in charge of all the rumors and whispers that go around Setauket. He ought to know what's going on, so I'm thinking you've got it right too." Caleb took something out of his coat, handing it to her. "I almost forgot, he told me to give you this. Another letter for you."

She stowed the paper and hugged him goodbye, letting her friend and fellow spy get back out on the water, where he would be harder to catch. Her message would make it to Ben by the morning, and General Washington would be alerted by dinner time the next evening. They'd managed to streamline the message-passing process fairly well, and it had paid off.

Scooping up the lantern, Grace returned to her quarters in Whitehall to read what Ben had sent her. Sitting down on her bed, she unfolded the letter, reading it by candlelight. It was another short note, telling her that she was doing well, and that he missed her, and that he wished she could visit to brighten up the dreary winter in Valley Forge. So that's what Grace resolved to do, thinking up a story to tell the judge in the morning.


	4. Christmas in Valley Forge

"I'm telling you, you're going to be his wife if you aren't careful!" Anna laughed, sitting on Grace's bed. She'd come to bid her friend a merry Christmas and safe travels as she went to "spend time with her growing family in Pennsylvania", or rather, to visit the rebel encampment in Valley Forge. Someone would be picking her up in town in just a couple of hours. Judge Woodhull had given her time off around the holiday as he always did, and she was travelling to meet Ben at the camp. "You'll end up in a house far nicer than Whitehall if he gets what he deserves out of this war."

"Anna, please! As if he would want me for a wife! What does being a spy say about loyalty?" she laughed, stuffing a dress into her valise. "Besides, we haven't known each other for very long. Well, not the people we've become over the last few years. We've both changed a lot. Not to mention the fact that he would have to ask the judge for my hand, now wouldn't he? And what would Judge Woodhull say about me marrying a rebel spymaster?"

"I see the way you look when you're talking about him," Anna told her warningly, "which is a whole lot of the time. Actually, Abe and I had a bet going when we were younger that you'd end up with Ben, and look who's been right all of this time. You two are quite the match."

"Benjamin Tallmadge would have been a fine husband even before the war," Grace nodded, turning back to her chest of drawers to hide her face for a moment. She and Ben had been planning on getting married, well before he and Caleb had run off to join the Continental Army, and well before her father had died in action. "And I'm sure the new Benjamin Tallmadge will be as well. But I'm telling you, we're not engaged yet."

"Oh, you will be," Anna encouraged. "Now I should be going. You've got some time left, but you have to pack. For spending Christmas with your family and all."

"I'll write," Grace promised as she stuffed more things into her bag. "And I'll see you soon. You hold down the ring for me."

A private picked her up in town in the afternoon and they set off together for Valley Forge, wrapping multiple blankets around themselves to keep out the biting cold. His (and Ben's) descriptions of the suffering in the camp did not prepare her for what she found when they rode up to the encampment. The camp itself was sprawling, dozens of wooden huts and tents taking up a massive area in the clearing. Soldiers stood in groups around several different fires, some of them cooking what little food that they had, others just trying to warm themselves and fight off frostbite for one more day. There wasn't much snow on the ground, but the air was bitterly cold, so cold that it hurt to breathe in too deeply.

Ben had written that the conditions were pitiful, but Grace could now see that they were even worse that that. The soldiers had almost no food, and many of them looked ill. Men with rags tied around their feet shuffled over to the fires, wearing all of the clothing they owned but still trying in vain to keep warm. Even their horses looked like they had grown thin and cold. Some of them were starved to the point where their ribs could be seen as they tried to graze in the fields and forests the men had built the camp on top of. The private, whose name she had found out was Jacob, tied their horse up near the others, Grace carrying her valise through the camp as soldiers waved, some of them calling out to ask who she was visiting and if she had brought letters or packages from New York.

"Grace!" She turned to see Ben running towards her. She smiled, jogging towards him and hugging him tightly when they reached each other. "I've missed you!" He gave her a hug, not caring about who saw the two of them embracing.

"I've missed you too." The nearest group of men was whistling and applauding for their commander as Grace took a step back. "How are you? Are you staying in tents like the men, or do you have a cabin like Washington? Are you eating alright?"

"I am fine," he assured her, guiding her over to a small cabin that had been built next to a larger one, which she assumed to be Washington's, at least from the guard posted out front and the flag hanging next to the door. "Put your things in here and we will go see the general."

The cabin was small, with no windows and only one standard-issue military cot crammed into a corner, surrounded by a table covered in papers, and coats hanging on the wall. The few supplies that he had were piled on another rickety wooden table in the corner, as close to the fireplace as possible. The fireplace itself was small, but enough to keep half of the room warm, which was all that was really needed. Grace set her valise down at the end of the bed, whispering that, "I've brought you some food, since you wrote about how scarce it is here. It isn't all that much, but I figured you'd appreciate something more than camp cooking."

He smiled, assuring her that, "Anything would be better than camp food. The general has pulled a few strings to get the men something special for Christmas, but it still will not be much."

"Then you may have everything. I'm fed well at Whitehall, so there is no need for me to keep it," she told him as Ben hugged her again. He was warm, something that seemed to be scarce around the camp.

"Thank you. Come now, we have an audience with the general to attend to. And people will talk if they are waiting on us for too long."

They had dinner with Washington and his aide de camp, Colonel Hamilton, who talked incessantly about Congress and what needed to be done, then switched to his plans for a budgeting system that could handle all of the debt that they had accumulated already and would continue to build up over the course of the war. Washington, however, was willing to stop all Congress and budgeting talk over dessert, instead telling Grace that she was welcome to stay in the camp, "especially since you are nearly a soldier, in some respects. However, we do not have any spare tents or cabins, either here nor in the camp followers' area, I believe. However, I must warn you, your staying with Mr. Tallmadge may cause some talk around the camp."

"It's fine, sir." She glanced over at Ben, who sat next to her. "If camp gossip is the worst that comes from having shelter from the cold and excellent companionship, I will endure it gladly."

"You do know I only have one cot," Ben reminded her as they left Washington's cabin and headed back towards his own. He took her hand as they walked, ostensibly to keep her warm. "We will have to share. The men will talk."

"Let them talk," she waved away the idea, looking over the camp. "Our friends are talking already. Besides, you need someone to keep you warm, especially on Christmas Eve. It's sad, seeing all of them freezing and starving on a holiday. Some of these men are from the south, I'm sure, where it doesn't even approach getting this cold in the dead of winter."

He bit his lip, admitting, "I'm sorry, but if I am to keep you warm, I will never want to let you go."

"Then don't," she resolved as they walked into the cabin and hung up their coats. "And I will never let you go either."

An hour later, Grace lay on a military cot, which wasn't extremely comfortable, but offered better sleeping quarters than the frozen dirt floor that many people in the camp were dealing with. Ben, who had been called back by General Washington almost as soon as they had gotten to the cabin, hung his military coat on a nail and joined her, wrapping another blanket over both of them. "You're shivering, cherie."

"It's cold! And you left me for a while. That's not very courteous of you, Major," she laughed as he pulled her closer, promising to keep her warm and not to move until morning. "Ah, I've missed you. But I'm glad you're safe."

"I am glad my favorite spy is alright," he smiled, kissing her cheek. "How are things in Setauket?"

"It's still the same little town it always was. Anna and Abe love making comments about us writing each other" she laughed, turning so she could look at him. Ben put an arm over her, so she wouldn't fall off the other side of the cot. "I live for the spy work, and to hear from you. It's thrilling and it's terrifying at the same time. The balance between not getting caught and being out in the open… It's something incredibly new."

"What of all the British troops there?" He watched her answer, more to watch her talk than to fully understand the rush of words that she was saying.

"They're everywhere, like rats. We have one staying at Whitehall, you know. He's a major too, and constantly has visitors. It's good for the spying business, but they wreak havoc on the floors, bringing in dirt and mud every time I clean, and demanding to be fed no matter what time of day it is. It may seem uncivilized here, but I can assure you that the redcoats are just as uncivilized, maybe even more so, than the desperate Continentals."

"I'm sorry if I seem like I'm too...close," Ben sighed, sitting up for a moment. "It really is because I'm freezing, but also because… well, I miss those days back in Setauket, when we would lie in the hayloft together, or when we'd be terrible children and meet up behind my father's church."

"I miss them too," she admitted frankly. "All of those times we would meet up in the woods and just go walking. And that time my father caught us, after the town had started talking about you being a rebel." Grace had to laugh a bit, thinking of how her father had talked to him so sternly, warning him to stay away from her, unless she be infected with the rebellious spirit that made 'the Tallmadge boy' as he called him in private, such an awful, treasonous person.

"You know, I wish you could stay here after Christmas," he sighed. "I wish you didn't have to leave for Setauket so soon."

"I don't have to." She had had an idea, thinking of all of the others that she had seen around the camp. "There are already women here working as laundresses and the like. They follow the army, don't they? They make a bit of money, if they do their share of the work. I could come with, I could follow you - "

"What about the Culper ring?" he asked, calming and grounding her apparent flash of brilliance. "What of the important work you are doing for the cause back there?"

Grace was silent for a moment before acknowledging that, "You're right. They need me in Setauket. But I promise you, I'll come here as often as I can. Let me know where you're going and I'll try to visit when I can. Please, let me continue to be a part of things here. Don't resign me to Setauket. I can't bear not being able to be with you."

"Of course not," he promised. "You may visit as often as you like. I would be delighted to have you here."

She smiled, burying her face in his chest. He took a risk and kissed the top of her head, and for that moment, it almost seemed like there was no war on, like there was no risk of discovery by the British or danger of being attacked in the middle of the night. She was with him., the old Ben, the one from Setauket, and all seemed right with the world. "Thank you. And I would be delighted to be here."

They woke to a bit of snow, the soldiers outside already lining up for the extra rations that Washington and his aide de camp had managed to secure for Christmas. The line stretched around their small cabin, and the hum of the soldiers' conversations could be heard as Grace stood, stretching and grabbing Ben's spare coat to wear over her own, since the air had only gotten colder during the night. He smiled at the sight of her, taking his coat from where he had hung it the previous evening. "The men will certainly talk if you wear that outside," he smiled, grabbing his own coat.

"Like I said, let them talk," she resolved. "I'm sure they already talk, what with you and I exchanging so many letters. Besides, I'm cold. They can't fault a woman for being cold."

He laughed, stopping at the door of the tent and taking her hand. "Merry Christmas, Grace."

"Merry Christmas, Ben."

"I'm going to do something rather bold. Feel free to stop me, but your letters over the last few months have… have reawakened the part of my mind that is still the same Ben Tallmadge from back in Setauket. And when I look at you, I see the same woman who would be waiting at the treeline of my father's house every time I rode home from Yale, the same woman who would knock on my window at night and beg me to tell her stories from the Sons of Liberty speeches in New Haven, the same woman who sat there reading me the news of a Continental Congress. I see the same woman, and…" He leaned forwards slowly giving her a gentle kiss. He stepped back immediately, apologizing. "I… I shouldn't have presumed -"

"No, Ben, it's fine." Grace pulled him closer, giving him a kiss and saying, "I've been thinking about doing that too. About the first time we kissed, and the last."

"Where's Tallmadge?" A voice came from outside of the tent, making both of them smile.

Ben squeezed her hand, planting a kiss on her cheek before resolving, "C'mon, we have to get out to the troops."


	5. John Andre

While Grace was busy cleaning the parlor, Abe walked in, carrying a stack of books. "How was your trip to see your, er, family for the holidays?"

"Wonderful," she smiled, starting to dust the mantlepiece. "It was too short of a trip." She checked to be sure that Mary and Judge Woodhull weren't nearby before sitting down, telling Abe that, "Ben and I are changed people, far different from who we were a few years back, but we've been brought closer through our letters. And, even though we aren't who we used to be, we've resolved to at least get to know each other as we are now, as time has shaped us."

Abe nodded, thinking for a moment. "Ben's a good man. You are a good woman. You two deserve each other. You know, Anna and I, the whole time you two were apart, we had hopes one of you would pick up writing again."

"Well, thank you for your concern," she laughed, getting up again to continue her work as Abe studied. "Anna's been betting on the whole thing, and I'm sure Caleb's been trying to guide us back to each other for a long time. He's bringing letters from Ben now, and I swear he's tried to read them so many times."

"Speaking of Caleb and letters, I need you to get word to him. My father's got me trapped in here, but there are rumors about a man named John Andre running British intelligence. He lives in Philadelphia, since they've got it for now. Hopefully Ben and the rest of the boys will have it back soon enough," he whispered as she moved a few things, dusting a table next to his chair. "If you could get that into a cipher and off to Caleb, that would be great."

"Andre, intelligence, Philadelphia." Grace nodded, saying, "I'll make sure there's a signal up, and I'll try to get the message to him tonight. I don't have much more to do." She paused as Major Hewlett walked into the front hall. Her next words would have to be chosen carefully. "I'll make sure to get it done tonight, for good measure. Wouldn't want that coat getting any worse, now would we?"

"Of course not," Abe nodded, glancing over to where Major Hewlett was standing. He gave her a look, saying that they would talk more later. "Thank you. I know you do a lot around here."

"It's not a problem, really."

Major Hewlett came into the room, starting to talk to Abe as Grace kept cleaning. She listened in, smiling to herself at the thought of Abe playing a spy for the Crown, when in reality, he was spying against them. Everything he had few Hewlett had been fake, with just enough details to make everything seem plausible. He had been playing his part extremely well. It was late when Grace managed to encipher her message, but Abe had already warned Anna, telling her to put up the signal as soon as she could. This information was something that could be the beginning of an important change, potentially starting to turn the tide of the war.

Grace had pulled her shawl tightly around her shoulders, waiting for Caleb to come into the cove. She had been waiting there for almost half an hour when his boat landed silently, her friend jumping out and giving her the bear hugs that he was known for. "Hey there, Gracie," he beamed. "How's it going?"

"Good. I've got something that could give us a leg up. Abe thinks he found out about the redcoat spymaster in Philadelphia. It's all in here." She handed over the letter, Caleb tucking it in his pocket quickly. "By the way, do happen to know where the army is?"

"Trying to write to Tallboy?" Caleb asked, watching Grace laugh. "They're moving soon, one of two places. I'll let you know, though. And remember, even if you can't get a letter through the post, I can usually get them to where they need to go."

"Thanks, Caleb. You really don't have to take the time to -"

He laughed, shaking his head. "I've got to bring him everything you put in code anyway, now don't I? It wouldn't matter if a few other letters traveled the same way. Next time you've got Anna signalling, feel free to send along a personal letter too."

"I should let you go," she sighed, giving her friend a hug. "Have a safe trip, Caleb. I'll tell the others you said hello too. They miss having you around just as much as I do."

"Thanks Gracie." Caleb hopped back into his boat, pushing off from the shore. "You have a safe trip back home. I'll try and bring news from Tallboy next time. By the way, he says that you've got to write under a different name - everyone's got a name or a number in our ring. Like Abe's Culper, and I'm 725. From now on, you've got to sign your letters as a woman named Mary Floyd, just so you ain't found out."

"Mary Floyd. Alright. Have a safe trip, Caleb. And tell Ben that Miss Floyd says hello and sends her regards," she smiled.

She watched him go, standing at the cove until she couldn't see his boat anymore, before grabbing her lantern and heading back home. There was still a lot of work to do, but then again, there always was. And she had to visit Anna, who she hadn't seen in a while, and thank her for signalling quickly. Anna would likely have more news, since she had grown close to Major Hewlett and would often come to learn things from him about troop movements and numbers. She would have to let Abe know that everything had been passed on to Caleb without incident, and she would have to be awake enough the next morning to go running errands with Mary, accompanying her into Setauket proper to go shopping for a whole host of things. Mary knew about Abe's spy work, and that Anna was involved, but she wasn't aware of the whole scope of what they did, or how many people were actually involved. For the next few weeks, however, her mission would be to find out as much as she could about Major John Andre, the supposed British spymaster.

Intelligence came sooner than Grace had been betting on. Major Hewlett was in his study, writing a draft of a letter to be sent to Admiral Lord Howe, when Grace knocked on the door, asking if she could do some cleaning. "The curtains in here look ghastly," she told him, "and full of dust. I don't know how you haven't gotten ill from them already. I really have been neglecting my cleaning in here… but then, I only do when you are in here, sir, to make sure I'm not disturbing any of your things."

"Yes, thank you for respecting that. Come on in, what I'm working on right now is nothing of too much importance," he told her, fishing around in the desk for more ink. "Just a report on our troops, headed to Admiral Lord Howe."

Getting to work, Grace casually asked him, "In York City, sir? He's the one controlling the waters off of York City, I mean."

"Yes, in York City and off of the coast. Admiral Lord Howe is one of the greatest naval commanders of our age, and we possess the strongest navy in the ocean," Major Hewlett told her confidently. "What with control of the seas, control of York City, and intelligence being gathered all around, we will win this war yet. Just you watch and see, we will win, and we will protect Setauket while we do it."

"Intelligence? What does that have to do with all of the fighting that's been going on?" she wondered aloud, pretending to be blind to all of the other aspects of the war. While she took down the curtains, carefully folding them to take them to the wash, Hewlett talked, telling her about the intricacies of fighting a war.

He sat back in his chair, watching her work. "Well, you see, there is the actual fighting that goes on, and then there are men who serve our country by using their eyes and ears. They count troops and watch movements, or overhear things about commanders and supplies. They report back to their commanders, and they make decisions about how to move. They try to make sure we know what the rebels are doing before they do it, so we can head them off."

"So they collect information and send it all back to one man? It must be a big job to be placed on one man's shoulders."

Hewlett nodded, telling her, "In the end, yes, it all goes back to one man. Major Andre does have a lot of weight on his shoulders, but he carries it well. He is very good at what he does, and has helped us tremendously already. He does so much behind the scenes that we can be grateful for."

"He sounds like a very smart man," Grace said, starting to dust some of the bookshelves that lined the walls. "Do they have to hide him? For his own safety?"

"No, no, not at all," Hewlett responded, going back to his letter. "He lives in a fine home in Philadelphia - Benjamin Franklin's, I believe. There is no reason for him to hide, as the city is solidly in our control. He is a very well-respected man, I can tell you that." Grace kept dusting, Hewlett telling her more about Major Andre. "He is quite a man of culture as well, a gifted artist and the like. A bit lacking in his knowledge of astronomy, but all men have their vices, I suppose." He chuckled a bit to himself, finishing his letter with a flourishing signature.

Grace finished up dusting, taking the curtains in her arms and promising that she would have them back the next day, after they had been washed and dried properly. Major Hewlett bid her a good afternoon, saying that he would see her at dinner, since he would be home from the garrison on time. Running into Mary and Thomas on the stairs, Grace made her way outside, starting to pump water to wash the curtains in. Humming to herself, she set about her washing, thinking that she would have to encipher all of the information about Andre and pass it along to Caleb. But there was time before he would come by again, plenty of time to collect more information and learn more secrets about the Regulars' movements.


	6. The Battle of Monmouth

Summer 1778

 _Grace,_

 _We've marched form Barren Hill in Pennsylvania and are making preparations to move into New Jersey. General Lafayette managed to outwit the British, taking a force of just over 2,000 men to surround General Howe's dispatch of 6,000 and feigning superiority by hiding them on a wooded outcropping. With a force a third of the size of General Howe's, and through volleys of periodic fire, they managed to attack them on three sides, forcing a retreat. It really was a brilliant plan._

 _I am sure you tire of hearing about troop movements and life in the camps. I, however, will never tire of hearing about life back in Setauket. Although you insist that it does not hold as much adventure, you are still far safer in our little village than encamped with the Continental Army._

 _I wish you all of the best, and I hope I will be able to see you again soon. With all good luck, I will be able to see you very shortly._

 _Ben_

Grace smiled, folding up the letter and holding it to her chest for a moment. She would write him back later that night, once she had finished her work. But for now, Judge Woodhull's study needed cleaning before he got home. Hopefully she would find something there to pass along with her next letter, or with one of Abe's dispatches to Caleb.

More and more letters arrived for her as Ben moved closer to New York with General Washington's army. He was slightly concerned about a man called General Lee, whose loyalties seemed to be in question, even though it sounded like Washington trusted him completely. Grace was able to see the trials of the military camp through the letters she received every week, and could tell that the Continental Army was in need of help. But they were getting closer.

In the middle of June, Grace was outside hanging up laundry when she saw a mounted soldier galloping towards Whitehall. The man wasn't dressed in a red "lobster" coat - instead he wore the coat of any normal farmer, but rode with the bearing of an army man. As he got closer, she recognized Ben ridging straight across the grounds, coming to a stop right in front of her. "Grace," he panted, both the horse and rider trying to catch their breath, "Monmouth. Washington is attacking at Monmouth, right after General Lee takes the flank of British soldiers."

"Ben, what are you doing here? What does this have to do with me?" She dropped the shirt that she had been pinning to the clothesline back in a basket full of things still waiting to be hung up, placing a hand on her hip and holding the other up to shield her eyes from the sunlight. Glancing around the property, she saw that no one was watching the exchange. "What's really going on?"

Ben hopped down from the horse, giving her a sweaty hug that Grace had to smile at. "We were close by, and I wanted to see you. It's been ages. That's not the only reason I'm here, I actually had news to bring into York City for General Washington. But I've been dying to see you, Gracie."

"Don't call me that, Tallboy," she laughed, giving him a quick peck on the cheek. "Do you want a drink or something? I'll have to keep you hidden out here, in the barn, but I'm sure I can scrounge up a drink and something to eat for, shall we say, a traveler in need."

"That would be nice." He shed his coat, stuffing it under the laundry that she still had to hang up, just in case it was recognized. He tied the horse to a tree, following her to the small kitchen that sat behind Whitehall. "Thank you."

Grace did not sleep much that night. As soon as everyone was asleep, she put together a basket of food, grabbing a lantern and going out to visit Ben. He was happy to see her, giving her a hug as soon as she closed the barn door. "How have you been?" she smiled, watching as he dug into his dinner.

"I've missed you. The army is gaining ground, and I think we can start working on a plan to take Philadelphia soon enough. What you got me about Andre, that helps."

"Thank you," she smiled, sitting down in the hay and watching him eat. "You know, this makes me think of all of those times we would steal food and have our meals out in my father's barn. And when it was cold out, and we would build fires in that clearing, and the others would come over and eat with us. But we would volunteer to wait to put the fire out, and we would sit and talk for hours, getting colder and colder until we had to hold hands or risk freezing our fingers off."

Ben laughed, confessing that, "My father would always yell at me about it when I got home, always. I was home late, and I would tell him that I was walking you home, and he would - well, he wouldn't yell, but he would chastise me for being so late, even when I told him I was making sure a lady got home safely. "

"Really?" She couldn't help but to smile, tearing off a piece of bread from the loaf that she had brought out. "My father, when he was home from the Royal Navy, would warn me about spending too much time with you. My mother was much less critical, especially after her first grandchild was born. Henry's eldest. He and Sophia have had three now, with a fourth on the way. My mother spent her time watching the children instead, since I was grown myself. Then I started working in Strong Tavern, and staying there, and every time… every time I got home, Anna would give me a look, that knowing look that women give each other, where they needn't speak a word but still know what the other is thinking."

"Oh, Abe, Caleb, and Anna knew all about it. Abe and Caleb would joke all the time about you and I," Ben said, continuing to eat ravenously. "When the three of us were together, they would turn on me every chance they got and ask about you. When we smuggled Abe to get that first kiss from Anna, he came back and asked me if I wanted the two of them to smuggle me over to your house for the same reason."

Grace moved to sit next to him, squeezing his hand. "I would have snuck out to see you first."

"Really? Well, I think I can help with that." He leaned forward, giving her a quick kiss. "And there you are, sneaking out to meet the boy in the barn."

"Well, I suppose I am." She leaned in, kissing him again before standing to say, "I'd love to stay here with you a while longer, but I promised Anna I would drop by… and I need to get a wink of sleep." Ben walked with her to the door of the barn, stopping her for a moment. They stood there holding hands in the June air, waiting until Grace proposed something. "Ben, I've been thinking. What if I came with you, even for a little while, so we wouldn't have to depend on each other's letters? So we could keep each other company, at least while you're close in New Jersey. I've hardly spent more than a day with you since Christmas."

"Perhaps for a little while, but the army needs you continuing your work."

After she'd hidden Ben and his horse in the barn, leaving them with provisions and blankets for the night, she headed to Anna's tavern - DeJong Tavern now, she had to remind herself - and let her friend know that Ben was back in town, and that she had been doing some thinking. "They have you here. They have Abe in York City, along with Culper Jr., whoever he may be. York City is the biggest stronghold and the place that's of most concern for Washington. They have someone who can get solid information from Major Hewlett. You've already done well there."

Regarding her with caution, Anna crossed her arms. "Don't tell me that you're planning on - "

"Please." Grace grabbed her hand, pleading that, "I need your help to pull it off. The rebels are going to be attacking in Monmouth in the next few days. I'm only going to take a few of my things, so it looks like a kidnapping or… or something like that. I'll be out of the house late at night, running errands like I am now - I still have to get over to the milliner's and drop an order off for Mary's birthday present from the judge. People head into town to drop notes and mail off all of the time, Anna. If anyone asks, I need you to tell them that I stopped by, that I was running errands and I stopped by here and you sent me home when it started getting dark out, since you were worried about me walking alone at night. I can do the rest. I just need you to do this for me."

Anna still had her misgivings. "You've talked to Ben about this, I assume?"

Grace nodded. "I have. He's meeting me in the woods outside of town tomorrow night, and we're riding to the encampment. We'll meet the rest of them in New Jersey. Anna, this is a perfect plan, can't you see? If they think I've been kidnapped by a band of rebels or something, they won't suspect me."

"I can't stop you. I know there is no way I can stop you, but you really do need to think about it… if you see yourself having a future with a man like him, who will be sailing back for home when all of this is over." Anna pursed her lips, finally hugging her friend and wishing her good luck. "Write to me, through Caleb. And be careful out there."

When she left DeJong Tavern, Grace had to meet with Caleb in one of the coves, letting him know about the plan and about Ben being in town. He promise that he would try to visit "old Tallboy" sometime soon. After Caleb had to sail away, Grace launched into action back at Whitehall. She had to take off her shoes on the porch, creeping silently inside to pack a few things to take with. She also had to destroy all of the Culper papers and coded messages she had hidden all around her room, stuffed into cracks in the walls and dropped under loose floorboards. When she finally collapsed into bed, the moon was getting closer and closer to the horizon.

The next day was a waiting game, feigning like everything was normal. When the sun had set and it was time to execute the plan, Grace was exhausted, but still brimming with adrenaline. She'd made sure to leave the back door to the house unlocked, taking her small bag and going into town, where Anna helped her set up part of a back road to seem like there had been a struggle. She ran towards where Ben was waiting in the woods, and climbed onto the horse behind him, praying that they wouldn't be seen by any British troops on their way.

They rode for hours, Grace dozing off once or twice but being jolted awake by the motion of the horse and the fear of falling off. She had never been too fond of horses, and held on to Ben tightly. They talked a bit, but it was hard to do while riding. They had to stop and let a Continental Army detachment pass as the sun rose, General Lee tipping his hat to them as he marched his troops further on towards Monmouth.

They reached the Continental camp near midday, when all of the soldiers had already marched off to take the courthouse, where the British officers were holed up, commanding a base out of the old law offices. Women who followed the camp were cooking and doing laundry, some of them singing as they washed uniforms in the closest stream. Grace dropped her bag in the tent she thought to be Ben's, at least from its proximity to Washington's and everything inside. As Ben rode to join the rest of his troops in battle, she went down to the stream, falling in line with the women who were hard at work.

"Hello, dear. What's your name? We all saw you ride in with Major Tallmadge there. You've got to be someone special to someone special if you've gotten an escort like that." A fleshy, sunburnt woman was piling coats in a basket, to be hung up on lines stretched between trees. "I'm Nan. This is Molly," she gestured to the woman bent over the stream, vigorously dunking and scrubbing a shirt to remove stains from it.

"I'm Grace," she smiled, grabbing a shirt to wash. "I'm from Setauket. It's near York City."

"Whose wife are you? Or are you one of those camp ladies just following the men around? Not that there's anything wrong with that," Molly asked from the stream, her Scottish dialect rather thick. "A girl has to earn her keep somehow."

"I'm not a wife, but I'm not a camp lady either," Grace told them as she worked. "I'm, as you said, someone rather special to someone rather special. The Major Tallmadge, if I can be that presumptuous. We were friends as children, and engaged before our fathers forbade it. He ran off to join the army years ago, and we're… well, we've decided to start anew this time around."

"Tallmadge himself!" Nan exclaimed, looking at her incredulously. "Wouldn't we all like to be?"

Molly laughed. "My own husband is off in battle, with Nan's. Neither of them are lookers, at least not as much as your major is." She handed Nan a shirt to wring the water out of and throw into the basket. "The women of the camp talk about him incessantly. There's going to be a lot of ladies jealous of you, my dear."

Grace spent the rest of the day with Molly and Nan, finishing more laundry than she had ever done before. When they were halfway through hanging everything up on the clotheslines all around camp, another woman came to tell them that dinner had been prepared, since no one knew when the troops would be back. The women all gathered around the fire, eating and swapping stories of their travels with their husbands and the hardships that they had faced.

The sun had set and the women were relaxing around the fire when they began to hear hoofbeats and footsteps coming back to camp. The first group of men followed a haggard and defeated-looking General Lee, who, unbeknownst to the women, had given orders to retreat and had retreated right into Washington's oncoming troops. The men would later describe that as being one of the only moments the famed general had lost his temper and given Lee a tongue-lashing for the ages. Lee's troops were followed by Washington, who still looked regal and composed, despite his seething anger at Lee. His troops were far happier, clapping each other on the back and whooping about their victory, Ben among them. The Marquis de Lafayette rode in behind Washington's troops, his men equally as joyous. Those who had been injured were helped in by others and brought to a special area of the camp, where soldiers, doctors, and women acting as war nurses alike all flocked, launching into action.

Ben dismounted his horse, tying the animal up with the other officers' horses. Grace made her way through the crowds of men reuniting with their wives, women calling out to see if their husbands had made it back, and those running around looking for food or medical attention. He was tired, covered in the dirt, sweat, and grime of battle, and slightly pink from being out in the sun all afternoon. Hoping to get a decent meal, he headed off towards his tent, but was stopped by a familiar voice. Turning to glimpse her edging through hordes of people, his eyes lit up as he saw her.

"Grace!" As soon as she reached the battle-weary soldier, he pulled her into a hug. "Ah, you do not know how glad I am to be able to see you again. I'm thankful after every battle I live through."

"I'm just glad that you're safe," she smiled into his shoulder, holding him tightly. "I was so worried when I had to see you ride off to battle while I waited here."

"Never mind that, Grace, I'm back," He kissed her cheek, Grace turning her head slightly so she could actually kiss him. "And the British are running, running back to New York."

"Congratulations." She leaned in to whisper, "Even with General Lee, and how angry General Washington seems to be at him, you've done well."

"How long are you staying with the camp?" he asked, almost not wanting to know how little time they had together. He took her hand and began to walk towards his tent.

"About that," Grace smiled, "I'm staying here. I've decided to move on to Continental-held land. I'm not a crucial part in the goings-on in Setauket any more. They have things handled there. Between the Culpers and the others, they have it covered. So I've come to be of service here, washing laundry, mending wounds, whatever the need may be. But for now, I'm exactly where I am needed the most."

"Oh? And where is that?" he asked as they turned into the tent.

"With you, Ben. I mean, if you would like me to be. I know we've decided to go back to where we were before the war and before… everything, but we've moved forward. I know you can tell it."

"Then this is where you will be," he smiled. "At least for now. There may be another mission for you yet, but right now, I'm sure you can stay and patch people up and do laundry and help me with my work. But for now, I need a change of clothes and a good meal."


	7. Philadelphia

**July, 1778**

"You, my dear, have earned an audience with General Washington." Ben walked into his tent, where Grace was busy folding the laundry she had taken off the closest line earlier in the day. "He requests your presence."

"Whatever would he want me for?" she asked. She hadn't met with the general alone more than once. Instead, they would talk over dinner when Washington had Lafayette and some of his other senior officers dine with him.

"I haven't the slightest idea. I only know that he requested to see you, by name, and as soon as possible," he smiled knowingly. Grace shook her head, setting down her laundry and following him out of the tent.

They'd been living in close quarters for a few weeks now, and seemed to still be the talk of the camp. All of the camp followers either wanted to be the woman who had captured the attention of the major or be the next one to meet her. Sometimes both. She'd fielded a lot of questions and met a lot of people over the last couple of weeks. She'd gotten along well with the women who followed the troops, preparing food, washing clothes, and mending uniforms with them. A few of the older women had taken her in as family, since she had none of her own, and would always allow her to work with them or to sit and have a meal while everyone was away at battle. But the best part was being able to see Ben nearly every day.

General Washington was deep in conversation with his aide de camp, the energetic and enthusiastic Hamilton. He'd been working nonstop to finish a request for additional supplies to be sent to the troops, and Washington was making his corrections and talking them over when Grace and Lafayette arrived. "Excuse me, sir," Ben nodded to them both, saying, "I've brought Grace back for you."

Grace laughed to herself, saying hello to the General and to Hamilton, who offered a nod and went back to writing. Washington told them to take a seat, Ben pulling out a chair for Grace and standing behind her, since there were no chairs left around the small table Hamilton was working on. "You may talk freely of this matter around Lieutenant Colonel Hamilton," Washington prefaced them. "He is one of my most trusted men, as you know. Now, Miss Hopwood, I know you are happy here at camp in the company of Major Tallmadge. However, you have proved your worth operating in Setauket. If it does not trouble you too much, I have another assignment for you. I'm sure you will prove capable."

"Of course not, sir. What will I be doing?"

"Much like your spy work, this is not something to be taken lightly. Here is my proposition: You know that our troops have just taken Philadelphia. However, it proves to be a hotbed of Loyalist and patriot fighting even now. Prominent families are expressing their loyalties to Britain, and there are many in the town trying to subvert our authority, whether it be through direct action or conspiracy. One of these families is currently searching for a maid, sometimes serving as a personal attendant to their eldest daughter. It would be an excellent position to fill with one of our agents, so we are able to monitor not only this family but the Tory and patriot leanings in the city," the general said, laying out his plan. "We need a woman's help for this."

"You're asking me to go to Philadelphia?" Grace clarified, Ben looking down at her to gauge her reaction.

Washington nodded. "We would provide you with transportation there, and all you would have to do would be the same type of code work that you did in Setauket. However, instead of sending messages through our friend Mr. 725, you would write directly to Major Tallmadge - code named Mr. John Bolton - at an address in the city that we will provide. If anyone went looking for the address, they would find an empty home. There would be absolutely nothing to incriminate you."

Ben put a steady hand on her shoulder, Grace reaching for it and looking up at him. "How long have you known?"

"The general and I have been discussing this for around a week now," he admitted. "I would have told you earlier, but you seemed so happy to be here, and I couldn't take that away form you until we had a plan."

She was quiet for a moment. "I would be leaving you here," she processed. They had been together for a month, and had grown much closer.

"Grace," he leaned down to advise, "I know you enjoy being here with me. But I will be moving out with General Lafayette soon to meet Admiral d'Estaing in Rhode Island, and then on to Massachusetts, and you would have to follow into battle. Following a band of soldiers is no life for someone as lovely as you. You have done it enough already. I would recommend you do this, if not for the general, then for me, who would feel much better knowing that you are safe and well taken care of in Philadelphia. I would still write to you, of course, and we would visit as often as possible."

She turned back to Washington, taking a deep breath and asking, "When do I leave?"

Ben lay in bed, Grace's head on his chest as they talked late into the night. What once had been a one-time conversation back when she had first arrived had long since settled into a routine - they often stayed up late contemplating complex questions and just being in the moment together. They'd started talking about what they thought life was like - or if indeed there was any life - on other planets, but had circled back to what they both were dwelling on: Grace's imminent departure for Philadelphia. She'd been accepted by the Shippen family even before Washington had offered her the position, since he knew that she would assent. Her things had been packed and she was set to leave fairly early the next morning. "Dear, I know you will be safer in Philadelphia, but I have to admit, I will miss you terribly. Even more so now that I have had you with me for so long."

"I don't want to leave you," she told him succinctly. "What if… what if something happens to you and I'm not around?"

"General Washington will send for you immediately," he reassured her, running a hand through her hair. "You will be back at my side before the day is out."

She pursed her lips, saying, "But what if, Heaven forbid - "

"Let us not dwell on dark thoughts such as that."

"You'll write me, won't you?" She looked up at him, her eyes shining in the faint moonlight.

"Of course." He gave her a kiss, holding her close. "As often as I can, and I will look forward to letters from you as well."

"As long as you don't forget me," she insisted.

"Gracie, I could never forget you, no matter how many days we spend apart. I am sure of it," he assured her, kissing her once more. "Now we shouldn't entertain thoughts like these for the time being. I would like, more than anything, to stay here with you. But if sitting up all night, watching you by the light of the moon and dreading the hour that you have to leave me is all I can do, then so be it."

Grace left for Philadelphia in the morning, not wanting to let go of Ben. She held his hand until the very last moment, when she had to follow a few soldiers and ride out of camp. He had come with her the entire time that she was saying her goodbyes to Nan and Molly, Hamilton, General Washington, and the other soldiers that she had come to know while she helped out the surgeons and war doctors. Several people were watching as they said their goodbyes, wishing each other good luck and safe travels. "Be careful," Grace entreated. "Please."

"I will," Ben promised as she embraced him. "About what I said to you last night, I should clarify - "

"Not now," she silenced him with a kiss. "I have to go."

"But Grace, I think we should talk about - "

"Not in front of the general." He glanced over, seeing that Washington was indeed looking on from the door of his tent. It was almost time to go. "Goodbye, Ben."

"Goodbye, Gracie. Write me as soon as you get to Philadelphia," he begged, squeezing her hand.

"Not a moment later," she promised, giving him a final kiss before mounting a horse. As they trotted towards the edge of camp, she looked back to see Ben watching her go. He raised a hand as if to say one final goodbye, Grace raising a hand in reply.

Philadelphia was a large city, not as big as York City, but fairly close. Unlike York City, however, it was teeming with patriots and Continental officers, who often clashed with the Loyalist families in the center of town, arguing in the square. They approached a massive home, the soldiers dropping Grace off after wishing her luck and hugging her goodbye. Watching him go, she took a deep breath, walked up the drive, knocked on the door, and waited.

By the evening, she had come to know the family well. Judge Shippen was a man loyal to the king, but he still held high-society affairs with whomever was in charge of the city at the time in attendance. He simply liked to see and be seen, and to have friends in high places, no matter who they may be. His daughter, Peggy, had almost immediately taken Grace on as a personal confidante, telling of how she had fallen in love with a British officer as they went upstairs after dinner, Judge Shippen retreating to his study to get some work done.

"He is a wonderful man, a patron of the arts, someone I trust completely," the young woman sighed, sitting down in her room as Grace put new sheets on her bed. Peggy watched her with interest. "Major Andre is certainly a magnificent man."

"Major Andre?" Grace asked, remembering the man who had interrogated her aboard the prison ship the _Jersey_ and subsequently intimidated her at Judge Woodhull's' party. "The Major John Andre?"

"Yes," Peggy told her, turning again to watch her maid work. "You know of him?"

"I've heard of him," Grace nodded, smoothing out the blankets before turning to look at Peggy. "He certainly is something."

"Have you ever fallen in love, Grace?" Peggy stood, walking to the window and looking out over the expansive gardens of her home. "Not just any sort of love, the kind of love where you always want to be beside someone, the kind where you want to share almost everything? The kind where you want to end up married to someone, not out of duty, but because you are drawn to them?"

"Ma'am, I know we haven't known each other for long, but I will tell you this," Grace boldly joined her at the window, speaking as a friend and not as a servant. "I have. I am. He's off in the army now, moving with his company to Rhode Island. At least he was when he wrote me his most recent letter," she lied. "I worry about him constantly, you know. So much can happen to a soldier."

"Do you want to marry him?" Peggy asked, staring at the moon rising above the city. "If all goes well with this war?"

"If only I could," Grace sighed. "We were engaged to be married, once, but that was a long time ago. His father suddenly had a change of heart, as did mine. But we have… well, rekindled what once was, and I hope it can be continued, and I hope that he himself hopes the same."

"If only I could," Peggy agreed. "If only I could."


	8. The Arrival of General Arnold

**August, 1778**

"Grace, a question for you," Peggy mused from her dressing table, "What do you think would happen if the British took Philadelphia once more?"

Grace pursed her lips, looking at her employer in the dressing table's mirror. She chose her next words carefully. "I think first and foremost, at least, you would be reunited with your sweetheart. From all you've told me about him, I don't think he would waste a moment before coming to see you. And, if they retook the city, we wouldn't be hosting all of the rebel officers tonight. We would have much better men here instead."

"You're quite right. How long do we have until the party begins?" Peggy stood to look through her collection of dresses. "I feel like I've done nothing and everything at the same time."

"Just under two hours. The officers will be arriving a little while before that, though," Grace reminded her. "Your father would like us to be ready earlier, however, so we can greet even the first guests."

"What about your love? The one who is off in the army? Would he journey all of the way here to see you if the British took over Philadelphia again?" She held up a blue dress, turning to Grace to ask, "What do you think of this one?"

"I think it's beautiful, just like the ones you see in His Majesty's court… it's the latest fashion for sure. And I hope he would come all of this way, even though it would be dangerous." She quickly added, "since he isn't from Pennsylvania, and his regiment has never been here. He would have to nearly desert to come here, unless he had direct orders to. So I won't be seeing him soon. Letters will have to suffice." This, at least, was true. Ben had written her at least once a week. All of them were in code, of course, since they could not risk their names or locations being discovered, and Ben couldn't release any more information about what he was doing or where he was going, at least not without enciphering the messages first.

 _Gracie,_

 _I hope they are treating you well in Philadelphia. General Greene and I have moved northward with a force of 3,000 men to meet Admiral d'Estaing and his troops there. The admiral rebuffed the idea of a joint Franco-American force attacking the British, but General Washington allowed the attack anyway. A storm scattered both of our fleets, but the British did not gain the upper hand, which is, at the end of the day, the most important._

 _We have journeyed on to Boston, where the admiral must have his fleet repaired. Our reception in the city was not a joyous one - in fact, many here consider our departure from Newport a form of desertion. We are doing our best to calm the situation at present. Tomorrow I must go back to Rhode Island with General Lafayette and help to organize the proper retreat, the one that Admiral d'Estaing did not._

 _I wish I was able to expand our fighting to other places in the colonies, to move on southward, to spread the British resources beyond what they can take. If possible, it would be even more beneficial to our cause if they could be fought on two fronts, from France and from the colonies. If, at least, our friends in France could provide further support, the Continental Army may be able to win this decisively. General Lafayette is working on negotiations with the French at the moment, but we do not know how long the process will take._

 _I am terribly sorry if all of this talk of war bores you, but it is all I have to report. I know you worry about my condition much more than what is good for you, but I can assure you that I am well and that there is nothing to fear._

 _I must end this letter here, for I am riding out early and must get some rest. Enjoy your time in the safety of Philadelphia, and know that you are constantly in my thoughts and prayers._

 _\- Ben_

The hour of the party came quickly, Grace following Peggy downstairs to greet their guests as they arrived. Grace met countless officers and troops who were lucky enough to be invited by those higher up in the ranks. She was also introduced to the higher class of Philadelphia society, which all seemed like the high society of any big city.

As she served drinks and watched the men and women dance, Grace thought back to the rebel ball Ben had invited her to, back to the day when she had first met the Marquis de Lafayette and General Washington, and had been initiated into their ring of spies, and thought of how naive she had been, how different things had been, even back then.

Grace poured more wine for a table of officers who were playing cards, seeing Peggy dancing with an officer that she had been talking to for most of the night. She smiled to herself, thinking of Ben and the others tht she had been so lucky to meet. Maybe Peggy too had found a charming Continental officer. More than anything, she wished to see her charming Continental officer, and to dance with him again, at a party like this.

Later that night, Peggy told her that she had indeed found him to be quite charming. "His name's Benedict Arnold. A general!" She calmed down, taking a deep breath and adding that, "He isn't like Major Andre at all, but I do like the man in his own way. He seems serious about courtship, though." She looked over to where Arnold stood and frowned, deep in conversation with Judge Shippen. "He's even begun talking to my father."

"I'm sure your dear Major Andre will convince your father otherwise. He's got a lot of merits too. Besides, he's British," Grace consoled as she helped Peggy get ready for bed. "Isn't that what any good man should be these days?"

"I wish they would just take the city again, and quickly," Peggy fretted as she changed into her nightdress. "I haven't seen him in forever. I'm sorry, where are my manners? You haven't seen your beloved in forever either!"

"Yes," she nodded pensively, watching Peggy take her hair down from its complicated style. "Peggy… I haven't told you the whole truth. The man I've told you about, the one I told you all of the stories about… he's a," she paused, choosing her words with extreme care, "a rebel. That is why we cannot - must not - be together. I came from a little Loyalist town, and when he shared his rebel sentiments, my father forbade us from marrying, and his father threw him out. He became an exile from our town, and went off to join the army. There is no way I can marry a man like that, but I am still very fond of him. We write, but I fear for the both of us."

"Oh, dear," Peggy sighed, turning to look at Grace. "I have not told you everything either. My father, and our whole family, is loyal to the Crown. But I also believe that no matter what, if it important to be loyal to the man that you love. That's what I do for John, even when he is away. We write, and I am - well, you mustn't tell anyone, but I am working on a project for him, recruiting someone to help him in his job. It's very complicated. I wouldn't expect you would understand, but I know you can tell the importance of loyalty. My father would hate to hear me say this, but if you really love this man, you should write him frankly, and tell him how you feel. Waiting will only hurt your heart more."

"You think I should write him?" Grace asked, making sure the blankets had been warmed. "Even though he is a rebel and a traitor?"

"Yes. Grace, if he truly loves you, you can steer him right. You know how to clean up a mess. So write him, and clean this one up too," Peggy smiled playfully. "You should do it."

"I think I will," she replied. "Have a good night, Peggy. Sleep well."

"You too, you too. Good luck with your letter."

Grace turned from her position at the door, telling her "thank you." She still had a lot of work to do, but she began composing her letter to Ben in her head. It was almost midnight before she was done cleaning up from the party and getting things in order for the next day, but still, Grace dropped down into a chair to start writing, dashing off a letter to Ben that she would send in the morning.


	9. The Letter

**Early 1779**

 _Grace,_

 _Thank you for your letter. I have been thinking quite a lot about your proposal, and I believe you are right. If it is what you feel in your heart, then you must follow your beliefs, and if you believe that you should retain your post in Philadelphia because of the Shippen/Andre/Arnold affair, you must do so. I confess, I think it better for you to retain to your post, as you have been extremely helpful to our cause. General Washington certainly would say the same._

 _In regards to the other half of your letter, I must make a confession here as well. I have long thought of the past, of what I was forced to leave in Setauket when I joined the Continental forces. I have also long thought that your intentions had changed, since you had been so distant, but then we became quite close. So I have remained quiet in mine. If you do choose to retain your post, and if you do choose to once again rekindle the closeness of the bond that we had in the year before I left Setauket, it would be more than acceptable to me. I only ask that you do not make a rash decision out of this, and that you put some thought into the matter._

 _I await your response, and shall await you as I will come to visit Philadelphia soon to meet with some of the Congressmen about a budget proposal for our army._

 _Most fondly,_

 _Ben_

Tucking the letter into her pocket, Grace smiled, thinking that she would have to write Ben back that night. Peggy had encouraged her to write and tell him what she really thought, since they had been stuck in an odd state of limbo since the last Christmas, when they had spent almost a month together. She had only seen him once since, but Peggy had been telling her to write, so write she did.

"Grace, dear," Peggy called, coming into the front hall. "Ah, you're back! Excellent. Did you get everything on the list?"

"Yes, ma'am," she nodded, showing her the basket of silk and sewing supplies that she had gone to collect in town. "I'll get started just as soon as I hang up my coat."

"Good. Now there is something I will need you to do in a few weeks' time. My father has ordered some new furniture, a lot of it for Becky's new home - you know she is to be married soon - but it will be arriving on a ship in Boston. I need you to see to it that it comes here. You'll go down to Boston, see that it gets transferred onto another ship headed for Philadelphia, and then come back here with it. HE would have sent one of the others, but you know our stable boy, the one he always sends on errands, broke his leg a little while ago," Peggy instructed. "You have some time, but it will be a nice way for you to get out of Philadelphia. If you stick to the main roads with the post rider, there shouldn't be any danger."

"Of course. And there will be someone to pick it up when I get back to Philadelphia?"

"Yes," Peggy nodded, starting to head for the parlor. "All you have to do is accompany it, just so no one tries to buy it off of the man at the port of Boston or the port in Philadelphia. Some of my friends have ordered things from England, only to find that someone else bought and paid for it when it arrived. The men at the port pocketed the money themselves. It's a shame, really, but that's what the rebels are resorting to." She paused, realizing what she had said. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to imply that your dear rebel -"

"It's alright," Grace assured her with a smile. "I know you don't mean him. It's all of the rogues and privateers who do things like that, not the officers."

"He's an officer?"

Grace nodded, telling her that, "He's a major. He's been in a few battles too." As she went into the sewing room and began working, Grace thought of Ben, of how she hadn't seen him in ages. He had said that he wanted to pursue what they had before. Did that mean an engagement? She would have to ask, but it would have to be in person, because asking about something like that in a letter might seem a bit too presumptuous. Hopefully it did. As they kept writing back and forth, Grace and Ben had grown closer, and they had definitely felt closer when they visited each other.

Starting to cut a new pattern for a dress, she thought of all of the times she would sit up in Strong Tavern, back when Selah Strong owned the place, sewing holes in shirts or coats for their tenants, who would give her a bit of money for her trouble. Ben would come and visit her, sitting at a table in the far corner of the tavern as the fire started to die out. He would have a drink, and they would sit up talking about anything and everything. That was where he told her that he was going to Yale, and where he told her that he was leaving Setauket for good.

" _My father found out about the Sons of Liberty meetings, and he's not happy. He told me to give them up, that it was a futile cause, but I cannot - I will not - give up on freedom," he said, leaning his elbows on the table in earnest. "He lectured me, but there is no way -"_

" _Ben, now that he knows, the whole town will find out," Grace replied, picking up another shirt and starting to sew on a button. "They will find out, and then you'll either have to sign an oath of loyalty or deal with whatever they decide to do to you."_

" _When I joined, I knew they would find out eventually. You know I couldn't just attend the meetings, though. I couldn't stand by while the British continued to profit form exploiting us, while they walked all over us. I had to take action at some point, which is why… why I've gone and signed up."_

" _Signed up? You're joining the rebel army?" she asked, her eyes growing wide. "You're leaving Setauket, aren't you?"_

 _He nodded, biting his lip. "Your father already thinks my leanings are too liberal. I know he won't take this well at all. Besides, the town is going to drive me out if I don't leave myself."_

" _After this, they aren't going to welcome you back."_

" _I know. I accepted that risk when I joined the Sons of Liberty." He paused, taking a drink. "I will be back, and I will marry you, I can promise that."_

 _Grace set her sewing down in her lap, looking to her fiance. "You've made yourself a pariah."_

" _I've made myself a soldier, fighting for what I believe in," he corrected. "And if that makes me a pariah, then I'll accept it. I will come back for you, hopefully with the army to free Setauket as well. I promise."_

" _And what should happen if, Heaven forbid, something happens to you?"_

 _Ben took her hand, assuring her that, "Then I will have someone write you, and you can tell my father. No matter how much he hates me now, he loves his son, and he will be able to help, should something happen to me. He is still very fond of you, but he will always refuse to let us marry because he doesn't want me contaminating a good Tory girl with my radical ideas." They both smiled, Ben squeezing her hand and vowing that, "I will come home to you, and we will be married. After the war, in a free United States of America, we will be married, and we will be free to do what we wish with our lives."_

" _And what is it that you wish to do with your life?" she asked._

" _To become a statesman, and work to build the government that comes out of the war. I want to make sure that we are never ruled by anyone as tyrannical as the British king again. And you can do whatever you wish - you can become a mother, or you can open up your own store, or teach, or whatever else you can dream up."_

 _Grace rose, coming to give him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Be careful, Ben. Please, be careful. Come back to me."_

" _I will," he promised. He could hardly bear to let go of her when it was time for him to leave, Grace walking out to the end of the road with him. Giving her a final kiss and his promise that he would write to her, Ben headed away, mounting the horse that he had tied up in the woods and riding off to join the rebels, thinking of Grace all the way there._

Grace kept sewing, humming a song that Caleb had taught her as she worked by candlelight. " _Farewell and adieu to you, Spanish ladies. Farewell and adieu, to you ladies of Spin… for we have received orders to sail to Old England_ -" She paused, setting her work down and going to the window to think. She would have to pass on more messages to Ben, since she had learned a lot more about Peggy and Benedict Arnold, who had quickly grown close. Rumor around Philadelphia's social circles had it that they would be married soon enough. Peggy herself had talked about him, but none too favorably. But that was all gossip that could be confirmed sooner or later.

For now, though, she had to occupy herself with her work, with passing on a message, and getting ready to head down to Boston to accompany Judge Shippen's presents to his eldest daughter. It would be a long trip, but one that she was looking forward to making. At least she could get out of the hustle and bustle of Philadelphia for a little while, if anything. It would be a nice trip to see another city, and she would hardly have any work to do.


	10. Boston

A.N.: Happy Christmas to everyone who celebrates! If not, have a good Monday!

* * *

Ben was waiting when her ship arrived at the port, waiting to see her and welcome her back to Philadelphia, which was a rebel stronghold still. Grace took her valise, walking down from the ship and into the harbor, taking her first step in the colonies in a very long time. She had every intention of heading back to Peggy's household, which had long since moved to another mansion when Peggy had seemingly given up on the soldier that she had been so in love with, instead planning to marry the Continental General Arnold, who himself was trying to secure a command at West Point. She had hardly gotten out of view of the ship in Philadelphia harbor when she was stopped by someone calling her name.

"Ben! How have you been?" Grace smiled as he took her bag.

"Alright. I've still got all of my limbs, now don't I?" he joked, giving her a hug. He was dressed like any other man would be at the port, looking like someone coming to pick up goods that they had ordered to be shipped to the port.

As they passed through the crowd gathering around a passenger ship, Grace laid out what she had found. "I'm going to work in the Arnold home, Ben. Peggy's going to marry him - she told me of their engagement right before I left, and the journey took longer than I thought, so the wedding is getting closer and closer. But I don't trust that man at all. Something about the way he locks himself away and lets no one in his study. He won't even let the other servants clean in there, or so they tell me in their letters. He's keeping secrets, Ben. Big ones."

"He's a general," Ben reminded her as they walked, "with an important command in Philadelphia, soon to be an important command in New York. All officers have their secrets. I know we do."

Grace shook her head, frowning. "Something about it… I don't trust. He's consulting with a British soldier, I know that much. The others have written me, saying there's a man he writes to all of the time - John Anderson, who he writes almost weekly. They say it looks like he writes in codes, and who would encode a letter besides a spy? It could be a commision from General Washington or one of his other generals, but the handwriting looks nothing like Hamilton's, from what I've heard. Some of them can read well, and I trust them."

"It is possible," Ben admitted as they walked. "We can look into it, but I don't think we have a lot to worry about." In reality, he had had his suspicions from the beginning about General Arnold, a man who everyone knew to be bitter at being slighted for promotions and commands in favor of younger generals and foreign ambassadors of goodwill. They turned out of the harbor, headed for one of the main roads.

Grace turned to look at him, stopping him in the street. "Now I was talking with Peggy before I left, and thinking things over, when I realized what I had been denying myself for a long time - a real conversation with you. A real, frank conversation about what we left behind in Setauket."

"Well, I'm afraid that is going to have to wait. I have to meet with a few generals within the hour. But I will have that conversation with you," he promised. "I am staying at the Warren Tavern. Now I know you have more than a day before you are expected back with everything, so I will see you later on. I've got a set of rooms there for my men. Take your pick, and you may have it."

Despite wanting to stop him, Grace watched Ben go, jogging off to make a meeting at the courthouse. She sighed, turning to find the tavern, where she set her things in a room and went to find dinner, being greeted warmly by the tavern owner's wife. "Ma'am, you are one of the patriots, are you not?" she asked frankly.

"I am," Grace nodded. "But I am not - I am merely a friend of one of them, Major Tallmadge. I'm nearing the end of a very long journey across an ocean and back to Philadelphia."

"Isn't the entire ocean controlled by the British?" the woman asked, sitting down at Grace's table.

"It is, but that's not for me to worry about. My sympathies do not matter to those I work for, and they do not really matter to anyone, after all. As a woman, I'm sure you are familiar with the feeling," Grace answered.

"Well, my husband and I are on your side, no matter what I am permitted to say or not by my - our - station," she assured her. "But that's not what's troubling you, is it? Oh, come now, I can tell when someone's got something on their mind. You've been thinking something ever since you checked in with my son."

Grace sighed, leaning closer to tell her, "I love a good man, a man I was engaged to marry five years ago, but it is all hope that I've strung out for what may be far too long. We have grown close, but I don't know if it will be enough to get back to where we once were."

"And Major Tallmadge is that man, I assume. He's paying your bill, after all. Well, I would say you need to talk to him. Perhaps you two can salvage what once was. And -"

"Barmaid, more ale here!" a man called, the tavern owner's wife sighing and excusing herself while Grace continued to eat.

It was late that night when Grace heard a knock on her door. She had been sitting up, reading in the firelight while she waited. She'd played the conversation over and over in her head, but it would never go according to plan. Setting her book aside, Grace stood, opening the door and letting Ben in. "Sorry I'm so late. I've been tied up at the courthouse all day. I was going to suggest that we speak outside, but I see you've already starting to prepare for bed." He took a seat in the chair that had been placed by a writing desk in the corner, shedding his coat. "Now that I'm back, however, I am willing to listen to whatever… whatever you wish to discuss."

"Ben, I've been thinking quite a lot, about us. About what we once were, five years ago." She stood, going to look out of the window over the harbor. People were still out and about, walking with lanterns to deliver messages and get to their posts, or to stumble on home from the tavern. The moon reflected on the water, casting shadows from the ships that had docked in the last few weeks. "About all of the time we spent together, all of the secret meetings to discuss the freedom of our colonies, about how close we were before your father and the rest of Setauket disowned you. And while I was away, I realized how much I missed that. How we had never gotten to speak plainly about it, because we were almost always in the company of others. And when we were alone, we didn't discuss it. We talked, and we got closer, but we've never talked about where we were back then, and where we are now. Ben, I've missed you, and I've missed what we were to each other, and I've often wondered, truth be told, if you missed them as well. I wish I could have asked earlier, but… well, we had already been separated by time and circumstance. I regret so much, and I do not want to regret not having a frank talk about it."

"So you mean to say I'm not the best option anymore? Or that you have reservations?"

"No, Ben, I…" She took a deep breath, wiping at her eyes. "It has always been you. It should have always been you. I should never have let you go in the first place, Ben. I should have followed you, but I was all my family had left in Setauket after my father died - the year after they forced you to break off our engagement. I should have followed once my mother moved to be with William and Henrietta, and I should have followed when Selah Strong was arrested and I went to work for Judge Woodhull. I regret that I did not."

"And I regret that I did not write, that I went silent when I took over as the head of intelligence gathering. I also regret not talking to you sooner, but I thought… I thought you had made your position clear once you stopped writing. I wish I had spoken up earlier, much earlier, as soon as we had all started working together, our old group of friends. I wish I would have prioritized getting close to you again. We did, but not quickly, not back to where we were years ago." He had joined her by the window, taking Grace's hand gently. "I must apologize. I've dreamt about it quite a lot, about how our lives could have been. I'm sorry I didn't see to it that they were."

Biting her lip, Grace turned to look at him, asking, "Does this mean that you would like to… to pick up where we left off with our lives, and not where we've grown them to be? That, even though so much has changed, you miss the way things were between us, back in Setauket, in the days when all we had to worry about was you getting caught by your father with all of that Sons of Liberty propaganda?"

Boldly, Ben leaned forward and kissed her, lingering close enough to whisper, "I would. I have missed them very much."

"Are we… are we engaged to be married again? Since my father is not around to ask permission from," She asked, turning to wrap her arms around him.

"If you still wish to be, then we are," he nodded, kissing the top of her head. "I wish to be."

"I would very much like that."

"But we must wait," he cautioned, Grace guiding him to sit down with her on the end of the bed as they talked. "We must wait until the war is over. Please, if only for the sake of my command and for the army. I -"

"I understand," she assured him. "I understand your duty to the army, to General Washington, to this country. And you're right. I have a duty to the army as well. I have to keep an eye on General Arnold and everyone else he comes into contact with for you. But you might just find some more letters for you to keep for yourself instead of passing everything on to General Washington."

Squeezing her hand, Ben insisted, "We will get married one day, when this bloody business is over. I can promise you that. But for now," he sighed, standing, "we have work to do."

"Ben? Can you… can you stay?"

He frowned, reminding her that, "You know how improper that would look."

"Not if we are engaged. Besides, your room is the next one over. And I'm not asking you to do anything but sleep by my side. Ben, I've missed you. Please, I'm asking as your fiancee."

He smiled a bit, saying, "Let me hang my coat in my room, and I will be back in a moment."

As the clock struck one in the morning, Grace turned over in bed, feeling Ben move a bit to keep his arm around her. He mumbled something in his sleep as she looked at him, glad that she was finally able to hold him again. Ben had always been there for her, and this was what should have been. What was right. She smiled to herself as he mumbled a few more words, leaning close to give him a kiss. "You're a good man, Benjamin Tallmadge. The right man."


	11. The Gunshot Heard 'Round the World

Ben had to leave the next morning, heading back to camp to work on rooting out a plot to kill General Washington. Grace stopped him at the door, saying, "I'll write as soon as I get to General Arnold's. Now please, be careful, Ben. There are so many people looking to hurt men like you, even here. Write me when you get there, alright?"

"Now you don't forget to pass on letters other than just ones for the Culpers," he reminded her with a smile. "Even with the sympathetic stain, I'd much rather the letters stay separate, at least for the time being, like we have been writing them."

"They will," she promised, listening to the soldiers readying themselves and heading downstairs. They would be gathering in the green and marching out soon, Ben's brigade headed right for the Continental camp. "But please, Ben, please write. And please… think about what we discussed."

"I already did. And I'll promise you this - we'll be married July 4th of whatever year this bloody war ends. Hopefully this one." He leaned forward and gave her a kiss, Grace smiling and wrapping her arms around him, promising that they would see each other soon. She was forced to watch them march away while she waited for the postman, who was giving her a ride out to West Point.

Grace had never liked General Arnold, but now that she was forced to live in his house, do his cleaning, and deal with his rage, she absolutely despised him. This was no secret between her and Peggy, who would sit up and talk with her every time he was away. He had an awful temper, and both her and Peggy pined for the days of General Andre. Even if he was a British general, Grace thought he was better for the both of them. But either way, she still didn't trust how Arnold would lock himself away to write, and swear at her about going near his papers. He locked his office whenever he was out, and she could hear him pacing the hallway late at night, or hurrying off to meet with men in the army that she had never heard of.

At least Ben wrote, though, and she could send her suspicions back to him. His letters were far apart, but he maintained the fact that he wanted to get married, even if it was only in the last paragraph or two of his messages. He was an army man first and foremost, and she knew it. His first love would always be America, so he would tell her all about what he was doing in the army and where they were moving. At least he would tell her how much he missed her. But one day, she felt something was definitely wrong.

It was storming terribly, and she'd finally gotten to stretch after finishing up work on a dress when something hit her. Something terrible, an awful feeling that something bad was going to happen. She sat down on the windowsill, looking to where she had left her work in the sewing room. Everything was alright, or so it seemed. But the crushing feeling of dread was unmistakable. It was, she felt, something to do with the army. They were in trouble, she could tell.

Walking out of the small room, she passed through a darkened hallway, holding a candle to light her way. The thunder kept crashing outside, a downpour flooding the city. General Arnold was at the fort, having been called away again. Peggy had gone to sleep early with a headache, and Grace was left to do her work, unpacking even more things that had arrived for the soon-to-be Arnolds. She had been working on Peggy's things, but now that she was asleep, Grace had to move on to the parlor. For a moment, she sat down, watching the fire flicker, thinking of the many fires she had tended, at home, in Whitehall, in Strong Tavern, in the tavern with Ben. Ben. Ben needed information, and now was the perfect time to get it.

Creeping up to General Arnold's study, Grace unlocked the door with the help of a few hairpins. There were boxes of books yet to be put away, but the general insisted on doing it himself. One of the boxes was fairly light, despite being labeled as a series of military history books. By candlelight, she opened it, finding dozens of the "John Anderson" letters that she had been told about by his servants. "Of course…" Muttering to herself, she grabbed a quill and a spare sheet of paper, slowly working out the coded messages until she got the instructions Anderson had sent along. But these were months old - there had to be newer ones somewhere.

A few moments of digging through the general's correspondence yielded the latest letter, dated just a week before. Working with the same code, Grace deciphered it quickly. There were plans to devalue the Continental currency, printing fake dollars in order to flood the market with them and bankrupt Congress. But there were others, others that vaguely referenced plans to share secrets about West Point, once or twice referring directly to selling them to the British Army. She had been right all along. General Arnold was a traitor. He was selling information to the British.

Immediately, Grace began drafting a letter to send to Ben, detailing how she had found the Anderson letters and how to break the code, all of the information translated being into the code system that they had used back in Setauket. When she took a few letters from Peggy to be posted the next morning, she would bring this one with, sending on nearly damning proof that there was a traitor high up in the ranks of the Continental Army. But she also wrote Ben another letter, wishing him well and mentioning that she had a terrible feeling about the army, but that she couldn't put her finger on exactly what it was.

It was over two weeks later when she received a reply, this one signed by someone who she had only written to a handful of times. Even so, she tore the letter open as soon as she got back to the Arnold household, hoping for any sort of news as she decoded it.

 _Thank you for the information. It has been handled by the appropriate agents. There is pressing news for you as well, something that I would rather have one of your friends tell you themselves, but under the circumstances, it is best that I inform you quickly myself. Benjamin Tallmadge was ambushed and shot by British mercenaries while he was out on a scouting mission. He has returned to camp and is taking well to his treatments, but I believe your presence here would put him at ease. He has told me of your engagement and I support it wholeheartedly. Please come at once._

 _\- 711_

General Washington was requesting her presence, and she had to go. Explaining everything to Peggy quite quickly, Grace excused herself to pack some of her things. "This man, the one you love," Peggy said, leaning on the doorway of Grace's room, "when he has gotten better, please ask him to come and stay with us."

"You realize that he is a rebel officer, ma'am?"

Peggy nodded. "I know. As is my soon-to-be husband, but all men have their vices." She turned to look in the hallway before whispering, "All of this detestable business, as long as it's over, and as long as… as long as I can find my way out of this and back to John, it doesn't matter. All of this, everything I've done, is so I can be with him. Now you said this gentleman of yours is injured, and I know he would want you by his side. You go, and you take as much time as you need. I'll tell Benedict that your mother is terribly ill."

Grace set out for the rebel camp in New Jersey the next morning, arriving as the sun was going down. It was a bit of a walk from the town proper, but she made it quickly, jogging through the camp and right up to Anna, who had just taken over a position in what was once Nathaniel Sackett's cart. "What are you doing here?" Grace asked, giving her friend a hug.

"After all of that business I wrote you about, I had to leave Setauket. I couldn't bear being there with Abe and all of that nasty business about Simcoe and - wait, why are you here?"

"Because my friend is lying in his tent recuperating from a gunshot wound. Now where is he?"

Anna pursed her lips, raising an eyebrow. "Your friend? You mean your fiance? Yes, he told me already. And Caleb, and Abe, and Mary, but that's all. Oh, and General Washington, so he could summon you properly. Culper Jr. and his side are out of the loop, but it's none of their business anyway. Congratulations, by the way." Anna squeezed her friend's hand, saying, "He's over in that tent there. He would be happy to see you, I'm sure. But, just a warning, he… he refuses to talk about being shot, or about how he found his way back here."

"As long as he's going to recover, I can live with not knowing the grisly details," Grace assured her, taking her things and looking to the tent. "I'll see you in the morning, and we can talk more then."

Grace headed for the tent immediately, knocking on one of the tent poles. A doctor walked out, telling her, "He's still fairly weak from his journey back here, but he's surely going to make it. He will be in a lot of pain for a long time, though."

Nodding, she went inside, setting her bag down. "Ben, I... hey," she smiled, taking his hand as she sat on the corner of his bed. "General Washington himself sent for me. He told me you were injured and I came as soon as I heard. I - Ben, what's wrong?"

He sat up slowly, a look of sadness in his eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. Grace, I have failed you."

"Ben, no, I know you didn't mean to get shot -"

Shaking his head, he insisted that, "That's not why… I was rescued by someone… someone with a home in the woods. And I… I betrayed our vows, the vows we haven't taken yet, but the vows that I wanted to uphold even before we were married. And I'm so sorry. I was weak, and I missed you so much. There really is no excuse for it. I… I would do anything to change what I did, but I cannot, and -"

"Ben, we have both done things we regret in each other's absence. But we are together again, and we can finally be formally engaged. I'll… I'll find the chaplain, and a witness, and we can be formally engaged and give them our intention to make our vows when the war is over. We can accept what we've done and move on from it, and… and be just as happy as we were back in Setauket years ago," she insisted. "We wouldn't have to worry, because we would promise each other that we would marry, in front of witnesses, and it would make those vows - those future vows - easier to uphold."

"You would still do that?"

"Of course. I love you, and nothing will change that." Seeing the look on his face, she clarified, "I've had quite a lot of time to think on my way here, and while I was with the Arnolds. I kept thinking of all of the times that I almost lost you, whether it be from your studies or your father or this war, and there's only one conclusion that I could come to, only one that I could keep coming back to. I love you, Ben Tallmadge."

"You're crying," he told her, reaching up to wipe her cheeks. Grace leaned forward, giving him a kiss and holding onto him tightly. "I'm so sorry. But I'm glad you're back."

"I'm not letting you out of my sight for a while, Major. No more getting shot for you."

He laughed a bit, wincing as he smirked. "I can work with that. As long as you keep calling me Major."


	12. An Interesting Engagement

Although Grace was allowed to stay with Ben until he recovered enough to lead a mission to investigate the counterfeiting plot that she had discovered, she was sent back to Philadelphia far too soon. Peggy brought her good news, though, saying that General Washington would be coming into town with a delegation in order to meet with Congress. "We will be hosting a ball next Thursday, and I'm going to need your help with so much. Besides, you had to miss Betsy's wedding because of that dreadful delay with the shipping company, and she's grown so fond of your company."

"A rebel ball? Well, we will have to tidy the house up, and I suppose we'll have to find you a new dress," Grace resolved, looking over the parlor and taking it all in. "There's going to be quite a lot to do here before Thanksgiving."

While Peggy had a new dress made and had the house decorated, Grace was busy getting their meals together and ensuring that everything was cleaned, running errands in town every day. She rose early and went to bed late, and would eat all of her meals while she sewed or while she was writing out memos for the rest of the staff. She was kept incredibly busy all day and every day up until the ball, preparing for Washington's arrival and that of other officers, many of whom would require lodging for the night.

Thanksgiving day dawned early, Grace getting out of bed and beginning to ready the house. She worked until the moment the ball started, getting things done behind the scenes and making sure that Peggy was ready when the first guests arrived. Dropping into a chair in her room, she wondered if there was any way she could nap before getting ready and heading back out to greet their guests. Of course, there was no time. So she washed up, changing into one of her best dresses before descending the stairs again to find Peggy waiting for her.

Pulling her aside, Peggy confided, "I want you to enjoy yourself. You've worked your fingers to the bone sewing this for me and getting it to fit perfectly, and repairing Benedict's coat, and scrubbing this house within an inch of its life. Please, enjoy yourself, dear. We've borrowed some of my father's household staff for the evening. You don't need to do anything but enjoy yourself."

"Thank you, ma'am. I see your soon-to-be husband is waiting for you to start the first dance. I would find him straight away," Grace suggested, looking to where Benedict Arnold was standing. "You look wonderful, by the way, ma'am."

As Peggy went off to find Arnold, Grace said hello to General Washington, who had just walked in and was headed for the dance floor. "Ma'am," he nodded, kissing her hand. "I've heard you have been doing well here, in all respects. But that is coming from a very biased gentleman, of course."

"Thank you, sir. Will the Major be joining us this evening?" she asked, Washington's eyes twinkling as he told her that yes, Ben would be joining them later, although he had some things to take care of in town at the moment.

"Major Tallmadge will also be staying here with some of the others while I ride back to camp. I am sure he will be delighted to see you. Now, I have some business to attend to with a certain woman at this party, one you brought in here earlier. My wife had quite a long journey, and it has been too long since I have seen her."

"Yes, sir. It's good to see you again."

Leaning in to whisper, Washington told her that, "Later, I shall require a dance from one of my best agents."

Grace smiled, assuring him, "Of course, you shall have one. But not as an agent, as one of the women hosting this ball. And, as protocol dictates, after Miss Shippen receives her dance."

"A very wise woman," he nodded. "If you will excuse me for the time being, I will see you for that dance later."

She leaned against the wall, watching him go. With a sigh, she turned away, heading into the main parlor, which had turned into a dance floor. A few songs had gone by while she was with Washington, and now the floor was occupied by many couples. Taking a glass of wine from the woman who stood preparing drinks, she smiled and took a seat, at least until she saw Peggy talking to a man in a blue uniform, one she recognized even with his back to her. She made her way over to them, putting a hand on the man's arm. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything, ma'am," she smiled at Peggy, who looked like she was trying to conceal her rage, "but it has been too long… far too long since I first told you about my fiance. I'm delighted that you could now be properly introduced. Peggy, this is my fiance, Major Ben Tallmadge."

"My pleasure," he nodded, looking to Grace. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too," she beamed, glancing over at Peggy.

Peggy was forced to smile, saying, "The pleasure is all mine, hosting the major in this home. I must be going, though, if you will excuse me. My own fiance is probably looking for me. And I owe General Washington a dance." She left them, Ben and Grace moving towards the wall.

"What was that about?"

"Nothing much, just some things to do with Arnold," he assured her, taking her hand. "I really have missed you terribly. But I will be here, at least for the next day. I should hope you hardly leave my side during this whole affair… I've never been that big of a fan of balls, but General Washington is quite the dancer."

"Yes, he's asked if he could have a dance later."

"Then I must ask if I may have this dance now."

"Of course." She set her glass down, allowing him to lead her onto the dance floor. They spent the next hour spinning around with the other couples, talking about almost anything and everything, but trying not to discuss the war. Eventually, they stopped so Grace could dance with General Washington, who soon after excused himself and his wife, as they would have to head back to camp and home, respectively.

As the ball wound down and many of their guests set out for home, Grace had to excuse herself several times to lead officers to their rooms upstairs. Many of them were staying in Arnold's home for the night and setting out in a group in the morning, so she would have her hands even more full cleaning up after them. But for now, all she had to do was show them upstairs and get them into their rooms. When she returned to the ballroom, she found Ben waiting for her, watching things die down. "Major Tallmadge, if you will come with me."

He followed her up the stairs, Grace leading him to a room near the end of the hall. With a glance over her shoulder, she followed him inside, closing the door behind them. "I'll come back once I've shown everyone upstairs and gotten Peggy and her family into their rooms. It may be a little while, but I promise I'll be back."

Ben pulled her close, giving her a kiss. "I should hope so. I've been thinking of you all night."

"I've been next to you all night!" she laughed.

"Very true. I should amend that to say I've been thinking of holding you all night, of it just being the two of us, like the old days, talking about the revolution and about the people of Setauket," he smiled, "and thinking of keeping you by my side until morning, if you should so choose."

"I would love to. But Ben… there's something I have to give you, something I dug up while I was cleaning yesterday. It's important, extremely important, but it's still in Arnold's office, at least for now. And in return, I'd like to be able to visit you in camp," Grace bargained, stepping back a bit. She held onto his hands, pressing, "I'll be back as soon as I can. But please, think about it."

An hour and a half later, she returned with a piece of paper folded in her hand. It had taken a while to get everyone to bed and to give the servants their instructions, telling them what to clear away and what to leave for the morning. Then she had to sneak into Arnold's study, copying down the letter she had seen the previous afternoon before heading to her own room to change. Ben was sitting up reading, putting his book down as soon as she walked in, locking the door behind her. "Here. I had to copy it down, but I want you to read this. It's another one of those letters from John Anderson, but try and read it like we read our Culper letters. Doesn't it sound suspicious?"

Sitting down next to Ben as he read it over, Grace waited. "It sounds fairly damning, at least if you read it like that. But we have to be sure of it. Keep bringing these to me, or copying them down. I want them word-for-word, alright? Get everything you can, and pass it all on through the post to me. Our camp isn't too far. If we move, we'll have to set up another way for you to contact me, but for now, it should work." He looked up at her, silent for a moment. "You know, you're always more beautiful than I remember you. Which is one reason why…" He folded the letter up, setting it down on the table by her bed as he fished something from his pocket. "Grace, I know we declared ourselves engaged again a few months ago, but I haven't felt quite right -"

"Ben, if you don't want to be -"

"That's not what I'm saying, not at all. I'm saying I don't feel right without giving you this." He held out a ring, a simple silver band, immediately apologizing for it being, "just what I could afford, even after scraping things together. I wish it could have been prettier, but -"

"It's beautiful," Grace smiled, slipping the ring on her finger and giving him a kiss. "Ben, it's perfect. Thank you."

"Thank you," he answered, "for everything you do. For putting up with all of my bloody nonsense. And for still wanting to marry me, even after all of this time and everything that's happened."

"I've wanted to marry you since you came back from that first Sons of Liberty meeting, when I saw how passionate you really were about our cause, about me, and about everything you dedicate yourself to," she confided, Ben putting an arm around her. He smelled like old books and invisible ink, and the fire he had been standing by for a while. She missed being there with him, having hushed conversations about freedom and revolution and the army. Or taking walks across Setauket and having lunch in the coves before she had to run back to work. Or just sitting up and talking about what he had learned while he was away at Yale.

He thought of their collective past too, all of the times they had been off on their own adventures, away from the rest. The first time they had kissed, it had been in one of the coves, after a party, when they were wine-drunk and ignoring Anna, Abe, and Caleb yelling into the woods and looking for them. It had been after another friend's Christmas party on a frosty evening, all of them heading home in a group up until Caleb had scared them, some of them running off in different directions. Ben had hunted her down, and after a while of hiding their feelings from each other, they'd stopped in the cove, the others catching up to watch. He knew they were there, but he had kissed her anyway. They had been craving that connection for a long time, both back then and now, since they were separated almost all of the time.

Slowly, he turned his head, leaning in to kiss her again. Grace followed his lead, Ben pulling her closer until she was straddling his lap. He ran a hand up her thigh, trying to bring her as physically close as possible. "Oh… Ben, do you really want to-"

"Yes," he rasped, "I mean, as long as you-"

"Please." She cut him off, starting to kiss him again. "Please."

Waking up to find the world blanketed in a light snow, Ben hardly moved after he blinked his eyes open. Grace had wrapped her arms around him sometime during the night and refusing to let him go, even in her sleep. He kissed the top of her head, wishing that he would never have to move, but knowing that everyone would want to march out right after breakfast. "Ben," she mumbled, looking up at him.

"Hmm?" He gave her a good morning kiss, Grace smiling as he spoke.

"Do you have to leave?"

"I do. I still have a bit of time, if I get ready for breakfast quickly."

"I wish I could go with you," she sighed, holding onto him tightly. "I wish I could… could do something for the ring, but still be with you. As soon as I get enough on General Arnold, I'm coming back to you, though."

"I'll take that as a promise," he nodded, sitting up in bed. Grace sat up with him, watching him go to get ready.

"Ben?"

He turned from the mirror, looking back at her. "Yeah?"

Grace bit her lip, looking into his eyes. "I love you."

"I love you too," he said, coming back to give her a kiss. "But right now, I've got to grab my coat and pretend like I'm coming out of my room and go downstairs for breakfast. Give me a bit of a head start, okay?"


	13. The Saga of Sarah Livingston

Since the rebels were still encamped nearby, Grace went to visit when she was given a few days off. Peggy and Arnold had gone to visit some friends in the countryside, so they sort of gave her some time off - as long as the house stayed clean while they were away, they would never have to know. She had set out in the afternoon, arriving in the camp a little while before sunset. Finding Ben and Caleb talking in the tent that they had been using as an intelligence office, she hugged them both, turning to Ben and fishing something out of her bag. "I have more of those letters. You have to show them to Washington quickly, though, since I need to have them back in Arnold's office by Monday morning, but there's more here. Just read them."

"I'll look through them later, but we just got a group of Tory prisoners brought into camp. They organized a raiding party and -"

Ben was interrupted by a private ducking into the tent, telling him that "the prisoners are all separated, Major Tallmadge. The woman is in the barn. We're trying to keep her away from the rest of the men. Sorry if I interrupted anything."

Thoughtfully, Ben nodded, handing the letters over to Caleb. "I've got to take care of this. I have too many interviews to do."

"Do you want me to talk to the woman they brought in?" Grace asked, looking over to him. "Maybe she'll respond better to a woman. I won't intimidate her as much, and I'm sure she will be more willing to talk to me."

"I think it's best that I do it, since I am the Chief of Intelligence. I will handle this," Ben told her decisivley, grabbing his coat and heading out of the tent.

Caleb turned to Grace, telling her that, "That sounded serious. You already know what I would do. He's talking to the men first, so you have time to grab dinner, have a nice chat, and be back here before he's even halfway done."

Grace left immediately, making her way through the camp to the stables, where she indeed found a woman in the barn, waiting there tied to a post. She would have been fairly pretty underneath all of the dirt that she was covered in, but she looked like she had been through a battle and a while in the woods. Handing over a basket of food without a word, Grace sat down on a bale of hay across from her. She patiently let her start eating, the woman watching her every move. "My name's Grace," she finally said, "and I'm not supposed to be here. But I heard that they had a woman tied up in here, a Tory woman, and I wanted to talk to you myself, before they could accuse you of anything you didn't do. Now what's your name?"

"Sarah. Sarah Livingston," the woman replied, continuing to eat. After a moment or two, she added, "What were you doing that you overheard? I thought women weren't allowed in the parts of camp where they talk of such things."

"Not most women, no." Grace shook her head, explaining that, "I'm, well, a bit of a special case. I work for a family in Philadelphia, and I help bring in intelligence. The men who are keeping you here, they are the ones who get my messages. I was in talking with some of them when I heard that they had you locked up in here."

Sarah looked her up and down, defensively asking, "What made them pick you?"

"Major Tallmadge has friends of his working in intelligence," Grace answered, Sarah's face growing more stormy. "He uses anyone he can get to bring in information. People who the British would never expect. I would assume that your side does the same thing. But we grew up together. We trust each other."

"He uses anyone he can get," Sarah repeated, crossing her arms. "He'll use you too, if you aren't careful."

"Sarah, whatever do you mean?" Grace questioned, standing up and starting to walk around the barn. It was a small space used for storing hay, but gave her enough room to walk a bit as she talked. "He's always been an upstanding gentleman. We grew up together, and I've hardly ever seen him falter in that. That is why I agreed to marry him, back before this war. And why I agreed again around a month ago."

Sarah's eyes grew wide as she answered. "You… when he had passed out from the pain of being shot, he kept mumbling a name. Now I know it was your name. You are the girl he talked about in his sleep, even after…" She shook her head, not meeting Grace's eye.

This time it was Grace's turn for a revelation. "It was your cabin in the woods. You're the woman who…" She took a deep breath, banishing the thought from her mind. "What made you go with these men? Surely you could have said that they attacked you, that your house was caught in the middle of the two parties, and that you were just defending yourself."

"I joined them because I wanted to," Sarah told her defiantly. "I joined them because I am tired of traitors ransacking our land, taking our homes, killing our men, taking advantage of women… I am tired of it, and there is no way I can sit by and stay out of this war. There is far too much for me to lose in this war. I've lost far too much already."

Grace took a deep breath. "I would ask questions, but I'll just tell you this. They will try you like they will try the men who came here with you, and then they will hang you all for what you did. I'm sure you will be offered a pardon if you sign something saying that they coerced you, or that you would be willing to work with us -"

"I will do no such thing," Sarah resolved, watching every move that Grace made. "I am tired of rebels, I am tired of your treason, and I would sooner see you hang than sign anything like that."

Turning to look back at Sarah, Grace scooped up her basket. "Well, I think we are done here. I wanted to help you, I really did. Even after I found out who you were, because you saved Ben - Major Tallmadge's - life, no matter what else you've done. But if you aren't willing to let us help, that's on you. Good luck, Sarah Livingston."

Grace spent the rest of her evening with some of the women in the camp, fixing a pile of uniforms and talking around the fire. Many of them had traveled with the camp for a while, and they had plenty of stories to tell about the battles they had witnessed, the places they had traveled, and the people they had met. She'd begun telling them her own stories, selected episodes from her life in Philadelphia, when an older woman came over to tell them that it was getting late. Murmurs of "she's right", "long day tomorrow", and "I should be off to bed" went around the fire, everyone setting their things aside and getting up, heading off to their tents, wagons, and carts as they bade each other goodnight.

It was only a little while after she had headed back to Ben's tent that Grace heard a commotion outside. Someone had screamed, and plenty of boots were running towards the source of the noise as Grace stuck her head out of the tent to watch. Men were headed towards the barn, guns in hand. Curious, she grabbed a lantern and made her way over to see what was going on.

There was a man standing over Sarah Livingston's body, trying to explain himself to the others. Grace was nearing the barn just as Ben landed his first punch. She couldn't hear what he was saying over the commotion, but she knew they had to pull him off of the man, no matter what had happened. "Ben, stop!" He was wound up in striking the man, Grace shoving her lantern into someone's hands and grabbing his arm, pulling him off. "Ben, what are you doing? That's no way for an officer to resolve anything, no matter what he did. He will be tried and punished for what he's done, but Ben, you cannot - you must not - do this."

He took a deep breath, nodding at her. Grace took her lantern back and grabbed his hand, guiding Ben out of the gaggle of soldiers and back towards his tent. As soon as they were inside, she set the lantern down, crossing her arms and waiting. "I don't know what came over me," he sighed, sitting down on the bed. "She… Grace, I promise you, I have no feelings for her. I was lonely, and in pain, and… I'm sorry. But that man out there was trying to take advantage of her, and I could not abide that."

Grace sat next to him, taking his hand again. "I do not blame you for what you did. He certainly deserved it. I blame you for doing that in front of all of the others. Being angry with him is understandable, but these men look up to you. You are one of their leaders, and you have always been level-headed in battle and off of the field. But if you do things like that, they will lose confidence in you, and they could lose confidence in the cause. You've become a symbol of liberty, Ben. There is a weight on your shoulders, and you are expected to bear it, no matter what happens," she reminded him. After a pause, she made sure to add, "But you don't have to carry it alone."

"Thank you. I think the best remedy to a night like this is a walk and some good rest," he proposed, taking the lantern and guiding her out of the tent once again. They headed towards the edge of the camp, Ben making sure that the epaulettes on his coat were clearly visible to the men stationed in intervals along the perimeter. "You know, Grace, she refused to sign anything even linking herself to our cause. I would have expected her to want to avoid being hanged."

"She had a husband, one who the militia killed a while ago. Maybe something inside her wished to join him."

Ben was silent for a while, just walking and holding her hand, carrying the lantern in the other. But when they reached the treeline, he stopped, turning to her. "I know I say this far too much, but I truly am sorry. I betrayed you, which is nearly as bad as betraying my country. I've made a vow to both -"

"I don't want to see you hanged," Grace said earnestly. "Betraying your country would see you hanged. Betraying me... well, Ben, I'm more disappointed than anything. But we have restated that vow that we agreed to make, that we have practically made and that we will make after the war, so we can leave it in the past. As long as it remains in the past, and as long as it does not happen again in the future, I am at peace with it."

He nodded, giving her a hug. "Thank you. I... thank you. You are far too good to me, and far too good a woman for me. I really do love you, more than you will ever know. Now we should best be headed in. You must be freezing to death out here. If I can see my breath in the air, you need a heavier cloak than that."

Grace smiled, heading back towards the tent with him. They talked about the stars that they could see, and about Ben's worries over the army and how low supplies were getting, how Congress hardly answered Hamilton's letters asking for money, and how they had recently had a couple more desertions. Shedding their coats when they got back in the tent, both of them dropped into bed and covered themselves in blankets. "If it stays like this, we'll have snow in the morning," Grace whispered, Ben wrapping an arm around her.

"As long as it isn't as bad as that winter in Valley Forge, the army should be fine. And as long as I have you to come and visit me, I should be fine," he whispered, Grace moving closer to him. "I know you have to head back to Philadelphia tomorrow, but I wish you could be here to keep me warm."

"Well, if I'm on the right track, I'll have something just as good for you," she assured him, thinking of the letters she had intercepted. "Read those John Anderson letters in the morning, and you'll see what I mean."


	14. A Wedding and an Engagement

Peggy appeared in the sewing room late one night, sitting down across from Grace. "There is something I must tell you, before you hear any rumors about it among the staff. Grace, you know you are one of the people I trust the most, and I owe you an explanation first and foremost. Benedict and I are moving to York City, since he cannot commute to West Point every day from here. He's become the commander there, and we are to be married shortly. Now Benedict has plenty of servants lined up in York City -"

"I see, it's time for me to pack my things. My time here is coming to an end, isn't it?"

"You may accompany us if you wish," Peggy proposed. "I will talk to Benedict if you wish."

Grace shook her head, setting her sewing in her lap. "I'm sorry, ma'am. I would love to accompany you to York City, but I think it is about time that I join my fiance in camp."

Peggy nodded understandingly. "I completely agree. Follow the man you love. Even if I cannot, someone should be living the life that they deserve. I will let Benedict know. There are still a few weeks until we leave, but I thought it best to inform you now. You will, of course, have to pack up your things beforehand."

"Of course," Grace agreed, continuing her work. As she reached for another spool of thread, she continued, saying, "I do not have a lot in the way of material things to pack up, but I will make sure that everything is in order before I leave, to help make the move to York City easier on you and the general."

"You are welcome to come to the wedding," Peggy added, standing once again. "I would like it if you were there, actually. Bring your rebel officer with you, if you wish."

"Thank you," Grace smiled, thinking that she would have to write to Ben that night. Truly, she would love to go to the wedding, since she and Peggy had been friends through so much, confessing things to each other that they had confessed to no one else. It wasn't too likely that Ben would be able to make it, but she had no idea where he was half of the time, and he could surprise her. "I will let him know. If you have any other letters to send, please have them set on the table in the front hall. I will leave for the post office first thing in the morning."

Peggy left her to think, Grace finishing up fixing one of Arnold's coats before dashing off a letter to Ben. She would send it in the morning with the rest of the post, hoping that Ben would write back quickly. No matter what, she would show up in camp, even if it took a long time to get there. It was that she either go back to Setauket or head to the Continental camp, which left her with a simple choice - heading back to the town that Simcoe now ruled with impunity or go to camp with Ben.

It was only a few weeks later that Peggy and Arnold were married in their home. Grace had packed her things and would be leaving that night. For his part, Ben had promised her a place to stay as long as she could help with some of the work that camp life involved. She would have her choice of helping with laundry and mending, being a part of the cooking staff, or working in the medical tents. Or hopping between them, which Grace was thinking would be the best option. Ben had arranged to pick her up himself that evening, and they would ride for camp immediately. But there was a long day ahead of her, Grace getting ready early in order to help Peggy prepare to become the new Mrs. Arnold. People were rushing in and out of the house, trying to get everything ready. Some of the servants had stayed up all night to make sure the place was spotless. Grace had gotten an hour or two of sleep and a nap during the early morning, but had been hard at work making sure she had all of her things packed and that Peggy would be ready on time.

She had just delivered Peggy to her father when there was another knock on the door. She had been letting people in all morning, whether it was the flower delivery boy or guests arriving early from out of town. This time, however, it was a Continental officer, dressed in his formal wear in honor of a fellow officer's wedding. He bowed formally to Grace, kissing her hand before leaning in to tell her, "You look beautiful."

Grace smiled, giving him a hug. "I wasn't expecting you until later!"

"Well, I had some time on my hands and thought I would set out early. I have to find General Arnold and pass on Washington's regards, but after that, I am yours," he told her, taking her hand and following Grace down the hall and into the house. She pointed out their seats before dropping him off with General Arnold and rushing to tell a few people that they would be starting soon.

Ben held her hand during the wedding, pulling her out on the dance floor as soon as Peggy and Arnold had led the first dance and other people had begun heading out on the floor. He wasn't much of a dancer himself, but he knew Grace liked dancing, and happily obliged, glad to see her genuinely smiling and laughing. Besides, it gave him a chance to think about something other than the war, the constant danger he was in, and the pressure that had been put on his shoulders to keep his friends safe and deliver information as soon as it was uncovered. He was glad to watch Grace happily dancing with him and a few others, her cheeks turning pink from the warmth of the firelight and the dance floor and a few strands of her hair out of place from all of the whirling around she had been doing. As he leaned against the wall, taking a break while she danced with General Arnold, Ben smiled to himself. Yes, he had decided, this was definitely the woman he wanted to marry. She was beautiful, and she was brilliant, and she was loyal to a fault. If anything, too loyal, defending him even when he made mistakes. Yes, she could be a bit blunt when telling people what she stood for, and incredibly stubborn, but he could work with that. At the end of the day, she made him smile, and he wanted to be near her.

 _It was Christmas Eve, snow blanketing the ground, when Ben sat in the first row of pews in his father's church. He had just applied to Yale, and was hoping he would get in for the fall term the next year. There would be a bit of a wait, but he was okay with that, largely because he and Grace had grown much closer. Sure, he had his job at the local school, but he lived to see her passing by on her way to work at Strong Tavern and for the evenings that they would spend together. He wanted to ask her to marry him, and had been talking to her father about it, but the time wasn't quite right - it just hadn't been the perfect time quite yet. He had liked her for years, and as their group grew up together, it had developed into more than a close friendship._

 _Sitting in church, he was hardly listening to his father, instead staring a bit above his right shoulder, thinking. Tonight. It would be tonight. He would offer to walk her home, since her mother was mildly ill and had only come for the morning service, leaving Grace to go to the Christmas Eve service with Anna and Selah Strong. He would offer to walk her home, and he would propose. He nodded to himself, lost in thought until his father coughed, gesturing for him to get up and collect the Christmas Eve offering. Ben got up, Abe heading down one side of the pews as he took the other. Grace was sitting at the end of a row, her hand brushing against his as she handed the offering plate over. She hesitated for a second, her hand lingering on his for just a second longer than normal as they met each other's eyes. He gave her a half smile as he moved on, Grace smiling to herself as Anna leaned over to whisper in her ear._

 _Everything had worked so far after the service, Ben offering to walk Grace home as his father stayed behind to talk and pray with people in need before locking up the church. They were quiet for a while, walking in the snow, but when they approached the river, Ben stopped her, saying, "Grace, I should best give you your present now, since tomorrow will be incredibly busy for my father and I. He… he wants to visit Samuel and our mother before the service."_

" _I understand," she nodded, thinking of how he would be spending Christmas without half of his family. "If you'd like, I could come and visit them with you." She had been there for both funerals, standing beside him at his mother's, when they were all 14, and holding his hand through his brother's funeral, a lot more recently._

" _That would be nice. Mother always liked you, and Samuel, well, Samuel saw you as part of the family almost as soon as you two met," Ben thought back. "But I really ought to give you your present now."_

" _Well, go on," she laughed, her breath visible in the icy air._

" _It isn't much of a physical present," he began, "since I cannot afford the symbols quite yet, and I'm going to have to save for Yale, if I make it there."_

" _Whatever do you mean?"_

" _I mean, it… the physical symbols are not what I am giving you - offering you, since it is up to you to accept. But one day, when I can afford them," he shrugged, continuing with a nervous laugh. "You know, I talked to my father about this, and everything he told me… none of it prepares you adequately. What I am trying to say is, well, Grace, we're quite close, and I am extremely fond of you, as I know you are of me. It has been time enough that… I've been talking to your father, and to my father, and they agreed that they would support my decision and give their assent, so I have nothing in my way to asking…" He paused, taking a flower out of his coat pocket as he dropped to one knee. "I cannot afford rings yet, but none of that matters, because no matter how poor I am, I love you. Grace, will you marry me?"_

" _Yes," she beamed, sinking down to hug him without hesitation. "Yes, of course I will. I would be delighted - no, beyond delighted to be your wife. Merry Christmas, Ben."_

He was shaken back to the present when Grace came over, leaning onto the wall and turning to him. "I'm thoroughly exhausted," she laughed. "General Arnold's made it a challenge to dance with every woman here, since almost every man wants to dance with Peggy."

"Well, to be completely honest, I would much rather just dance with you," he told her, keeping his voice low. He glanced over to Peggy, adding, "They say she's the most beautiful woman in all of the colonies, but I'm sure whoever they are, they've never seen you."

"As long as they aren't you, let them think that," Grace quipped. "Do you want more wine? They've got far too much for a party like this."

It was getting late when they stopped talking to other guests, drinking and dancing, and decided to head out. Grace went to say her goodbyes while Ben readied the horse, tying her bags to the saddle and making sure everything was secure. They started out for the Continental camp as soon as Grace finished saying goodbye, reaching the small city of tents a little after midnight.

As Ben tied up the horse and had a word with one of the guards on duty, Grace changed into her nightdress, piling blankets onto the bed. It would be another freezing night, but they had gotten used to them. Ben returned a little while later, hanging up his coat and joining her. "Do you remember the night I first proposed to you?" he asked as he wound an arm around her, Grace throwing blankets over both of them.

"I do." Grace turned to look at him, saying, "Truth be told, I had had my suspicions for some time. I saw you leaving our house one night when my father was in town. His ship had docked that afternoon, and you were talking to him that night. I saw you leaving while I was getting ready for bed. I thought it would be Christmas morning, but that night, in church, I knew. I just knew, and I had confirmed it when you offered to walk me home. But I was more than ready to say yes then, and I am more than ready to say yes on our wedding day."

Ben kissed the top of her head, confessing, "I wish we could be married sooner. I see no reason why not tomorrow, or the day after, but I would prefer to be married in a free country, on free soil, on the day our country first declared independence."

Taking a moment to think, Grace came up with an idea. "We could have a ceremony, a small one, just saying that we promise to live as a married couple and uphold the duties of a married couple, but then have the actual wedding ceremony and the party on the 4th of July, in whatever year this war ends. We could sign all of the documents, and all we would need is a chaplain to be there for it. The actual ceremony can wait. I must confess, I've been thinking of this, just in case something should happen… a betrothal ceremony, but we could have someone stand in for my father. I would like, beyond anything, to be Mrs. Tallmadge. Even if it isn't quite official. Officially betrothed, with more than just our word to each other."

"In the morning. Pick out your best dress when you wake up, and I'll find the chaplain and someone to stand as your father," he promised.

"Really?"

"Really."

It was the middle of the morning when Grace and Ben stood in front of the chaplain, Colonel Hamilton sitting nearby and drawing up the official documents while they waited. Ben had talked to them earlier, and they all had agreed. It wouldn't be normal, but in the middle of a war, no one knew who would live or die, and they wanted to ensure some things as quickly as possible. "Where is he? You said you'd found someone to sign as my father. An officer at that," Grace asked, looking to Ben. "He should be here by now."

"He should be here soon, I'm sure of it. This officer is a busy man."

They all turned as the chaplain's tent opened, General Washington striding in. "I apologize for being late. There was an urgent dispatch that needed answering, which arrived as I was on my way out here. Grace, you look wonderful. Major Tallmadge, you have done exceedingly well for yourself. Out of everything you have hunted down for our cause, she may be your best discovery."


	15. Defending the Garrison

"So what do I call you, Mrs. Tallmadge?" Caleb asked, dropping into a seat in the tent that Ben and Grace shared. "Ah, I'll just call you Gracie."

"Thanks," Grace smiled. "I'm not quite sure, actually. Who has betrothal ceremonies anymore? At least not among people like us. Maybe the noblemen over in England, but certainly not a reverend's son and the woman who worked at a tavern and as a servant for years. Ben wants to wait to get really, actually married, which I completely understand, but we discussed it, and, well, there is always a chance when it comes to war. There is always the chance that something could happen to him, so this is the next best thing."

Caleb nodded, telling her that, "It's understandable enough. Tallboy's been in love with you for years, you know. When I went to pick up messages from Woody, he would always ask me to see how you were doing. I'd have Abe keep me updated, by way of Anna."

"So the spy ring was spying on me too?" Grace laughed, getting up to fetch them something to eat.

"I wouldn't call it spying, per say, but…" Caleb shrugged, following her lead out of the tent. "I wish I coulda been there for you two, but I'll be at the wedding, I can promise you that. Tallboy'll be needing a best man. Hey, if you're half of his wife, does that mean you only do half of your wifely duties?"

"Shut it, Caleb."

"Ah, Tallboy would tell us everything back then, I'm sure he won't spare us -"

Ben appeared in the doorway of the tent, telling them to follow him, "quickly. There's going to be an attack on the garrison, and we need to meet with General Washington. Caleb, eat later. Let's go."

As he explained it to Washington, they had gotten a warning from Culper Jr., via the newspaper. An attack was being planned on the garrison, General Clinton planning on splitting his forces and attacking them at night, when they would be the weakest. Ben laid out his entire plan for a counterattack, bracing the garrison and readying the rest of men in camp for a fight so Clinton would have no chance, even if he split his forces. When he attacked, they would be prepared.

Washington was silent, deep in thought as Ben described his plan in detail. Finally, the general took a breath and determined, "Ready the men. Send a detachment to head him off, and make sure the rest of them men are prepared for a fight tonight. I want them all in their tents, waiting with their weapons. We will make General Clinton think that he has the upper hand, but as soon as the fighting starts, the men can come out and fight. Go, raise the troops. Make sure they are fed and in tents waiting by nightfall." Ben nodded, heading out of the tent to go raise the alarm. Washington turned to Grace, instructing her to, "talk to the women following the camp. They need to be warned. I will have men down near the followers' area to protect them, but they deserve to be warned. Try to convince them to stay inside tonight."

"Yes, sir," Grace answered, standing. "I'm sure they will, especially with the children to think of."

Caleb and Grace left to warn others, Grace taking off towards the camp followers' area, where she found Anna, letting her know first before spreading word to the other women. Caleb, on the other hand, went to find Ben and help ready the men, who already seemed to be on alert. "Everyone needs to be inside early," Grace stressed, Anna agreeing. They had gathered the women who were working on laundry together, telling all of them what was going to happen later that night. "There will be soldiers stationed here to protect you. We - they are not expecting anyone to attack over here, but you can never be absolutely sure. The men should have this taken care of, since intelligence came in to head them off. Anna has volunteered to shelter anyone who wants to go in her cart, since it can fit a lot of people. Please, your work can wait. Make sure that you and your children are safe tonight."

Anna and Grace went into camp to talk to the women who were busy cooking dinner, and then they would head to the medical tent, letting the women there know as well. Meanwhile, men were lining up and cleaning their rifles, attaching their bayonets to their guns while Ben spoke to them. Caleb was rounding up others and talking to the men who were on guard duty. Everyone in the camp had heard the news by mid-afternoon and had begun making preparations. By the time supper was served, the camp was buzzing with a nervous energy, everyone there watching and waiting for some sign of the British troops. Of course, nothing would be happening for a while, but they were ready, anticipating a quick response.

Giving Anna a hug goodbye, Grace told her friend that, "You're likely safer with the women than if you were in camp… Good luck, Anna. Be careful."

"You too. I'll see you in the morning."

"See you in the morning," Grace promised, heading towards Ben's tent, which was pitched near those of the other officers. If anything happened, she thought she would be relatively safe there, since the British sense of honor stated that officers were to be captured and not killed. On the other hand, there would be bullets flying everywhere, and anything could happen.

As the sun went down, Ben came back, leaning his gun on the tent pole by the door. He sat down next to Grace, who had a single candle burning, perched on the small writing table he had set up. Taking her hand, he gave her a somber look. "I really do wish you were down with the camp followers," he sighed. "You could stay with Anna for the night."

"No. I know it's more dangerous here, but Ben, I want to be with you. I want to be here. I know you aren't used to me going into battle, but we all have to do it some time or another," she said, moving to sit on the bed. Ben joined her, putting an arm around her shoulders. Grace leaned her head on his shoulder. "This is the worst part, the waiting. It's awful when you go into battle, waiting for you to come back and not knowing what happened to you. But waiting in the middle of what is about to become a battlefield is just as awful."

"I know. If you want to get some sleep before everything starts, I promise I'll wake you before I go."

Grace leaned on him, closing her eyes as she said, "I don't want to lie down. I want to sit up and wait with you, because I know you are going to be sitting here, thinking about the men who are waiting in their tents, talking to each other, just as nervous as we are. Thinking of their wives and children or their girlfriends in the camp followers' area."

Kissing the top of her head, Ben whispered, "I promise you, we are all going to be okay."

They sat like that for what seemed like an eternity, until a shot rang out across the camp. Both of them jumped up, Ben grabbing his gun. "Stay in the tent. Please, stay in the tent. I love you." He gave her a quick kiss, heading out towards the fighting.

"I love you too!" Grace had to call after him, Ben already running down the row of officer's tents. She sighed, sitting down on the bed again. There was nothing she could really do except hope and pray for the best. There was no real safe place to go, but the fighting was happening across the camp. General Clinton's forces had tried to attack at a weak point near the woods, and the Continental soldiers had pounced on it. The Stony Point garrison would be safe if they stopped the British early.

With a sigh, Grace laid down on the bed, wrapping herself in a blanket. She tried to close her eyes, but the distant sounds of gunfire and yelling kept her awake. So she sat up, watching the candle on the table burn and thinking that she would have to be ready to run to the medical tent when it was all over. They would need help there, and she was one of the closest people with enough experience to actually be helpful. Watching the candle burn, she thought back to all of those conversations she and Ben had had in Strong Tavern, after it had closed and she was cleaning up.

 _Ben leaned against the bar, watching Grace wipe off tables. "Thank you for dropping off lunch today," he told her, Grace moving between tables and thinking that she would need to sweep the floor when she was done. "Did you hear the children talking?"_

 _Ben had been working at the local school for a few months now, since he had a while to wait until he left for Yale. Grace had stopped by during the lunch hour, dropping off a basket of food and saying hello while she was running errands for Selah Strong. She couldn't stay for long, but it was a nice surprise. "No, most of them were eating outside, or playing games in the field behind the schoolhouse."_

" _Well, when I called everyone back in, they were all whispering about you, wondering if you're my sweetheart," he smiled, Grace turning to look at him._

 _Coming over to where he stood, she smirked, replying, "I would have loved to have seen how red Mr. Tallmadge turned in front of all of those children. What did you tell them?"_

" _The truth." Ben gave her a kiss, adding, "And they went absolutely mad for it, I'm sure. That's all they talked about all day when they were doing their lessons. I could hardly get them to read for me without other children whispering in the back of the classroom. And once they were dismissed, you were the topic of every conversation I heard on the way out of class."_

" _Well, I'm glad we have become so popular," Grace laughed. "I'm sure all of the children will be asking me if Mr. Tallmadge and I are rather fond of each other… I have a lot of errands to run tomorrow, and they'll be in town, since it will be Saturday."_

" _Oh joy," Ben smiled, kissing her again. "Well, let them talk."_

It seemed like ages before the gunfire stopped, a cheer erupting from across the camp. Grace had been sitting there, thinking of all sorts of memories that she and Ben had shared, trying to keep herself distracted and not thinking about what Ben was doing now. When she could stand it no longer, she jumped up, taking the candle with her as she made her way towards the medical tent. Men were already being carried in or walking over, clutching their wounds. Taking a quick look over the men, she saw that Ben wasn't among the injured soldiers streaming in. That was either good, or very bad, but she pushed the thought out of her head and started working.

Almost an hour and a half later, Ben appeared in the tent, Grace catching a glimpse of him as she was bringing more bandages over to a doctor. "Hello there." He came over to where she was working, giving her a kiss while she helped a doctor bandage up a man's arm. "I had a feeling you would be here."

"As soon as I heard the men cheering, I came over here. I knew they would need as much help as they could get," she told him, wiping the blood off of her hands before giving him a hug. "The men have been telling me that we still have our flag flying over the camp and over the garrison."

"We won the night. General Clinton yielded when he realized that we had been ready all along and had led him into a trap that he was building for us." Ben watched her work as she moved over to the next bed, checking on a man whose head had been grazed by a bullet. "I have to go start interrogations of all of the men we captured. Someone gave away the location of our camp, and I am determined to find out who."

"Good," Grace nodded, offering the wounded man a bit of brandy. "I'm sure we won't get any sleep until sunrise at least, but if there are too many of them, ask Colonel Hamilton or Caleb or someone to help you. You're already exhausted as it is, and this will not help."

"I'll be alright." He kissed her goodbye, taking off for where their prisoners were being held.

"Your sweetheart?" the wounded man asked.

"My husband."


	16. Betrayal

It was early in the morning when Grace rolled over in bed to find Ben had already gone, his boots and coat missing from their usual spot. This was normal - he would have to go brief Washington as soon as he got up, or assemble his regiment and move early. But this time, he came back just as Grace was falling asleep again. "Good morning," he smiled, kissing her cheek.

"Ben, it's so early. The sun is hardly up," she yawned, sitting up in bed.

"Well, I've been sent to fetch you, Colonel Hamilton, and General Lafayette. We're heading for West Point in an hour," Ben told her, getting up to grab some of his things. "We are staying with the Arnolds for a couple of days. General Washington wants to consult with him on a few things, and see for himself how his command of West Point is doing."

"He wants me to come with?" She stood, grabbing a dress and her shoes. "Give me a few minutes and I'll be ready. I'll change and pack a few things, then run down to see if they have anything for breakfast. It's early, but I know the women down there get started before the sun is up. I'll have breakfast for everyone by the time we leave."

They rode out an hour later, making it to West Point a few hours later. Grace was glad to be able to be on her own feet again. She had never like riding horses all that much, but they were extremely helpful, especially in the colonies, where it seemed like everything was a decent distance away. They tied up their horses on the side of the house, General Arnold coming out to meet them. The horses would have to rest a bit before they headed for the fort, so he brought them inside, offering drinks in the parlor. As the men took a drink with their fellow commander, Grace brought their things upstairs to a set of rooms that had been set up for them.

As she took in the view of the gardens from her and Ben's room, there was a knock on the door. Peggy came in, giving her a hug and saying hello. "It has been too long," she smiled, coming in and saying hello. "I've heard tell that you are going by Mrs. Tallmadge now."

"To an extent," Grace nodded, sitting down next to her friend. "I guess you could say I've married up... Major Tallmadge is a good man, and he comes from a good family. Not one like yours, but they are good people."

"How are things back in Setauket?"

"I'm moving with the army now, helping out in the medical tents, doing laundry, and cooking. I've made a lot of friends there," Grace told her. "One of the other women from Setauket, my friend Anna, is running a cart, selling things people might need. It isn't much, but it's a decent life. Better than what a lot of other people have."

"Well, I have to be going," Peggy said, standing. "My sewing circle meets down the street in a little while. You're welcome to join us if you wish."

"No, I'm alright," Grace smiled. "I ought to be unpacking, getting everyone's things ready. It should not take long, but it has been a long journey. Thank you, though."

"Very well. I hope you will be joining us at dinner tonight."

"Of course." Grace watched Peggy go, standing at the window until she saw he going down the drive. Immediately, she made her way to Benedict Arnold's office, picking the lock open. She would only have a little while before the men came back from West Point, but she knew what she was looking for. The servants would not dare to even try the door, so she knew that she was safe, at least for the time being.

Pulling open some of the desk drawers, Grace felt for a false bottom or a false panel, eventually finding one in the bottom drawer of the desk. It was big enough to hide a bundle of letters, but not much else. Fishing the letters out, Grace sat down and started reading, decoding them in her head. Arnold and John Anderson used a rather simple code, one she had figured out long ago. She kept reading, finishing all of the letters just as she heard horses trotting down the drive. Everyone was coming back. As quickly as she could, Grace put all of the letters back, closing up the false panel and the desk drawers before heading out of the office and locking it again.

She had just reached the bottom of the stairs when the door opened, Arnold leading the rest of the men inside. "Ah, Grace, there you are. How are you finding your accommodations?"

"This is a wonderful home, general," she smiled pleasantly, glancing over at Ben. "Did you have an easy ride back from the fort?"

"It was no more difficult than any other," Lafayette answered for him, kissing Grace's hand. "It has been too long, madame." He stood again, taking her arm and leading her into the parlor, where he offered her a drink while Ben, Arnold, and Washington talked about defense of the fort from the British on the other side of the channel.

Washington's aide-de-camp, Colonel Hamilton, came to join them. "You are the woman from Setauket, the one who would come across intelligence from the local magistrate and in the home you worked in, and pass it along, are you not?"

"Yes," Grace answered, taking a drink. "I have been doing that for the last couple of years. More recently, I have been tracking down one specific source of information, in regards to a specific case of - well, shall we say, potential desertion and spying among our ranks. As a matter of fact, I have to speak with my husband about that." She stood, thanking Lafayette for his company. "We can talk more after dinner, for I know you and the others have much to discuss over the course of the afternoon. Now I really must find my husband."

Grace tracked Ben down to a small room off of the front hall, where he was still talking to Washington and Arnold. She took a deep breath, knocking on the door. Arnold stuck his head into the hall, telling her pointedly to go away. "Not now. We gentlemen are busy."

"Very well," she gave him a fake smile as Ben and Washington looked out in the hall, past Arnold. "Could you please tell my husband that I…" she put a hand to her stomach, biting her lip for effect, "I have something important to tell him. Of the most importance, both to us and to our country."

Arnold, taking the hint, stepped out into the hall to talk to her. "Let me be the first to offer my congratulations, madam. I am sure General Washington and I could spare you a moment with your husband. I will let the general know, and we will surely be able to give you some time." He turned back to the door, but paused, looking back at Grace. "I wish you two the best, and hope this first child is a son."

"Thank you, sir," Grace beamed. She waited as Arnold talked to the men, then watched Arnold and Washington leave the room. Arnold made his way into the parlor, but Washington stopped to talk for a bit.

"I know you would have waited with anything other than important information, but I do not see why you are concealing it from General Arnold," he said, keeping his voice low. "However, I trust your judgement, and that all will be revealed to me in time."

"Yes, sir," she nodded, glancing towards the parlor, where Arnold was deep in conversation with Hamilton and Lafayette. "Ben will tell you as soon as he gets a moment, but I assure you I have found something terribly important. And sir, I know it may seem unreasonable right now, but please do not tell General Arnold anything more that could be seen as a matter of import. Please, for the sake of our country."

Washington regarded her questioningly, but asked no more, allowing her to go into the room that they had been meeting in. There was a map laid out on the table, Ben leaning on it as he tried to discern a plan. Grace closed the door softly as he looked up. "Arnold said you had something to tell me, something that should not wait. He made it seem like we should be -"

"No, I'm not expecting. That was just a ploy to get him out of here. Ben, while you all were gone, I did some spying of my own. I found more of those letters. He is planning on meeting with Anderson, and - well, it was not exactly spelled out, but if there is enough money provided, he seems to have agreed to hand over documents. This is almost conclusive evidence. We just have to see that he actually went through with it."

Ben shook his head, thinking aloud. "We don't have to have real proof. Even attempting to sell information means that he is doubting his loyalties. I… I'll talk to Washington about it as soon as he is out of earshot. But Grace, we mustn't alarm him. Everything has to seem like normal," he told her. "It was a good idea, coming up with the pregnancy ruse. That should keep him off track. Just keep it up. Give me some time to talk with Washington, and we can take care of this before he has a chance to run."

"Then you must play your part as well," she reminded him, taking her husband's hand. "Remember, you've just learned that you're about to become a father. You have to act the part, even in front of all of the other men. Washington knows that something is up, but the others have no idea. Actually, I think that it's for the best. The fewer people who know about this, the better, at least for now."

Agreeing wholeheartedly, Ben pulled her closer to whisper, "Then we had best be going back out there to share our happy news. Hopefully one day we can make that announcement for real, but right now, let's go keep the story up, shall we?"

"Yes." Grace gave him a kiss, Ben stopping her before she reached the door.

"You are an incredible agent," he smiled. "And one day, I'm sure, you will make an incredible mother. I'm sure even a band of children couldn't outwit you."

"If the band of children is anything at all like us, I have my doubts," Grace laughed. "Now let's go, before they start asking questions and wondering where we've disappeared to. Or why we've really disappeared."

The two of them rejoined the rest in the parlor, making their announcement and beaming at everyone's congratulations. By dinner time, they were all speculating about whether the next Tallmadge was going to be a boy or a girl, wondering when the baby would arrive, and suggesting names. This kept the Arnolds distracted enough for Ben to fill Washington, Hamilton, and Lafayette in properly and come up with a plan.

It was fairly early in the evening when Grace retired, saying that she should lie down after the excitement of the day. Ben promised to join her as soon as the officers were done discussing a plan for the defense of West Point, taking the opportunity to whisper, "it's been done" as he kissed her cheek. She nodded, faking a yawn as she kissed him back and headed to their room upstairs. Peggy too had retired early, but they ran into each other at the top of the stairway.

"I thought your rooms were on the third floor," Grace observed, seeing that Peggy was on the second floor landing. "Have you come down for some air? I myself love this area, looking over the front hall."

Peggy nodded, offering a "congratulations, by the way. Benedict told me earlier, before dinner, but I could hardly catch a moment alone with you to give you my congratulations personally. How long have you known?"

"I've had my suspicions for a while now," Grace smiled, putting a hand to her stomach. "When I had to let out my corset the first time, I thought it was because I had put on a bit of weight. But I think I am about to have to do that again, and, well, we just know, now don't we? I finally had to tell Ben this morning, because I know you would have noticed and mentioned soemthing. Or General Lafayette - his wife has had two children already, and I am sure he would have noticed I am not quite the slender young woman who he met years ago. And it was about time."

"Well, congratulations. Benedict and I are trying for a child of our own. Personally, I would hope for a son, to be named Edward, after my father," Peggy confided, leaning against the railing. They could hear snatches of the conversation going on in the parlor, where the firelight was spilling into the hallway. "You know, sometimes I stand here just to listen and see what I can pick up. They are awfully busy men, but I feel like they could benefit from a woman's mind in their military matters. But who are we to say?"

Nodding, Grace joined her. "I would think this war would be resolved much more quickly, and likely with a lot less bloodshed, if we had a few women sitting in on these meetings. We could get more done and squared away over tea than they do on the battlefield. I've heard tell of a woman or two disguising herself so she can fight, and sometimes, well, sometimes I do not blame them in the slightest."

"I just wish this war had never touched our colonies," Peggy sighed. "I do miss Philadelphia, and everything that came with it."

They stayed up talking for a while, Peggy finally telling Grace to get some rest, since, "Every mother is entitled to her sleep!" Grace agreed, going into the room that she and Ben had claimed. Sitting up in her nightdress, all she could think about was the traitor sitting in the parlor below her. Every so often, she would get up and pace a bit, or look out of the window and try to catch a glimpse of the bay beyond the trees.

Ben came to bed an hour or so later, telling her as he shed his coat that, "Washington is planning on confronting him tomorrow, after breakfast, when there is no way for him to be able to lie or disappear. Hamilton has taken up a post working on a letter to Congress, so if he tries to leave tonight, someone will be there to stop him. I doubt it, though, since you played your part so well."

He dropped into bed beside her, Grace laying her head on his shoulder. "Thank you, Major."

Smirking, Ben kissed the top of her head. "I still can hardly believe… I was never fond of the man, but after Saratoga… well, we all had confidence in him, even General Washington. You're sure that what you read was proof enough?"

"I am." She was quiet for a bit, both of them lost in thought as they watched a few candles burn down. "Ben?"

"Hmm?"

"One day, when this war is over, can we get a nice little house, with some stairs and a barn, and a view of the water? It doesn't have to be the ocean, just a lake or a river somewhere normal, where we don't have to worry about redcoats and raiders and spies and traitors. With just enough room for our children - real children, not ones we pretend to have to distract a general. Just far away enough that we don't have to deal with the social fallout in Setauket, but close enough that we can still visit our friends and our families. Somewhere where I don't have to worry about you being shot every time you ride away from home."

"One day," he promised, "you can have everything your heart desires. No more spying, no more danger, no more secret messages. One day, I promise you, this war will end, and we will be on the winning side of it."

Grace was about to respond when they heard what only could have been a cannon firing in the sound. They both sat up in bed, Ben going to look out of the window. He couldn't see much, but reported that it, "Must be some ships that got too close. Colonel Jameson will have it in a report in the morning. Nothing to worry about."

He laid back down next to her, blowing out the candles on his way. "Ben, I can't bear the thought of us not winning this war. We would both be hanged as spies. I don't think I could stand that, having to watch Washington…"

"It will never come to that," Ben promised, pulling her close. Grace laid her head on his chest, Ben running a hand through her hair as he talked. "If we lose this war, I will make sure you're safe. They would never hang a woman."

"I couldn't watch them hang you," she sighed, draping an arm over him.

"Right now, we need to be thinking about whether or not they will be hanging General Arnold," Ben confided, holding onto her in the darkness. But no matter how much he tried to distract himself from the thought, Ben would ruminate on the idea that he too one day could be hanged. They sat up listening to the firefight in the sound, wondering what was going on and exchanging a few words until Grace finally fell asleep. Ben was up for a while longer, trying to come to terms with the fact that one of the most trusted generals in the Continental Army was a traitor, and had been in contact with the British for months.


	17. Defection

A.N.: 2 chapters in a day, since I'll be super busy tomorrow and I'm going to a New Years' party at night... so no more chapters until 2018! Enjoy!

* * *

In the morning, Ben set off for West Point, Washington dispatching him to see what the cannonading was about the night before and to gauge the accuracy of the report that was supposed to be on its way. Grace took his spot at the breakfast table, watching General Arnold with suspicion. Ben had stopped her on the stairs, whispering that she had to keep up the ruse, putting Arnold at ease while he was gone, just in case Arnold was concerned about having another officer heading to the fort. Grace had kissed him goodbye, wishing him luck in finding out about what sounded like the beginnings of a battle happening in the harbor the night before.

At breakfast, she was forced to act like everything was normal, retiring upstairs for a little while when she was done eating, pretending to be exhausted already. When she came back, the dishes had been cleared and the men were discussing Arnold's excellent command of West Point, and how the transfer of power over to him had been incredibly smooth. Taking a seat again, Grace looked over the map that they had taken out, Washington assuring Arnold that she could be trusted after they exchanged a glance.

A young man in a Continental uniform appeared at the door, coming over to give Arnold a letter. "Excuse me, sir, Colonel Jameson's report from West Point. He says that it's urgent." The soldier stood at attention next to Arnold's chair as he read.

"Ah, perfect timing," Arnold nodded, reading over the letter with concern. His expression grew dark as he folded the paper up and put it in his coat pocket, standing and telling them, "If you will excuse me for a moment, gentlemen. And lady. This requires a quick response."

"Of course," Washington nodded, watching Arnold head for his study upstairs. As soon as he was out of the room, Washington turned to the others, lowering his voice. "Major Tallmadge has assured me that we have enough proof to convict him. When he returns, we will confront him about it. Hamilton, I will want you blocking the door. Grace, you should not have to witness this. He may get rather violent. I would recommend that you head back to your room for now."

Grace contradicted him immediately, knowing that she could convince him to let her stay there and watch what became of General Arnold. "With all due respect, sir, I had a role in discovering his treachery. I was one of those who tracked him for a while, in fact. I would like to see it come to its end. If it does not trouble you too much, I would like to stay here." She was solid in her decision, curious to see how it would play out.

To his credit, Washington knew that he could not change her mind. Major Tallmadge had reminded him of how stubborn she could be when he first brought up the idea of adding another person to the Culper ring, and again when Grace had demanded to follow the movement of the army. Both times, they had discussed what it would mean, allowing her to make decisions like that, but in the end, Grace won out. "Very well. If you -"

Washington was interrupted by the sound of the front door bursting open, footsteps bounding towards the dining room. Reflexively, all of them stood, reaching for something to defend themselves with. The few seconds of alarm ended when they saw that it was Caleb, running in with news from the camp. "Sirs, Gracie, Arnold's a traitor. He's been working with the British for months."

"We already know, Lieutenant Brewster," Hamilton said, gesturing for Caleb to sit down beside him and have something to drink, since he had ridden from the main encampment as fast as he could. "In fact, we are about to confront him."

"Speaking of, he's been gone for a bit longer than I would expect. I wouldn't think… unless that report was more than just a routine report of the fort's goings-on," Grace brought up, standing to look in the front hall. "He had his coat on at breakfast, correct?"

"Yes, I believe so," Lafayette nodded, joining her in the hallway just as the front door opened again. "All of us did."

"He's gone, I watched him row away. I would have had a good shot at him, but I got there too late. He's deserted." It seemed like Ben had ridden back almost as soon as he had gotten to the fort, coming with the news that, "They had Anderson - John Andre - and they let him go on Arnold's orders. He was recaptured by some scouts, and they brought to the fort. He was carrying a letter from Arnold and plans of West Point. They still have him, but Arnold's disappeared with everything that he knows."

The group was now all standing in the front hall, reeling from the fact that Arnold had defected right before they were about to confront him. "He knows about you," Grace realized, looking to Caleb. "He knows your name, that you run the whaleboats. And he knows Ben's in charge of intelligence." She turned to Washington, telling him, "He could very well put the pieces together that you're the messenger, and I'm sure he could get more than that with a little bit of thinking. I mean... Caleb and Ben are from Setauket. Peggy knows that I came from there too. Arnold is also fairly sure that we have a man on Long Island. He could put all of this together."

"He doesn't know Culper's real identity, though," Ben reminded her. "As long as Abe is safe, we can keep this up, and the ring remains intact. Besides, a man in New York - well, that could be anyone. Culper Jr. should be safe as well."

They were interrupted by a horrible scream coming from upstairs. Taking the stairs two at a time, they found Peggy in her room, half out of her mind. Her hair had fallen out of its normal style, and her dress was half unbuttoned as she raved about Arnold's disappearance. "They took him! The spirits, they took him up there, and put hot irons in his head! I must speak to Washington. Please, I must speak to Washington!"

"Mrs. Arnold, I am right here," Washington told her, Hamilton and Lafayette attempting to keep her from running, ultimately having to physically restrain her. They set her down on her bed, Peggy still screaming, going on about how the Devil had taken her husband.

Hamilton sighed, telling the others, "She's delusional. Learning that her husband defected has shaken her too much."

"You are not Washington! You're an impostor! Please, have mercy, my husband is gone and -"

"Margaret Shippen, that is enough," Grace said, her voice stern as she waded through the group of men. "Gentlemen, let me try to help her. She's been through a great shock, one that would be difficult for you to understand." Glancing at Ben, she added, "Seeing one's husband desert their cause, especially if they leave you behind and betray everything you thought you had, well, it can be quite a shock. The betrayal can be too much for some women to deal with and stay level-headed. And you all have to talk to the man that you captured, because he surely has a lot of information."

Ben nodded, coming to give her a kiss on the cheek. "We will need to move fast. When we return, we will have to leave and get back to camp, in case he reveals the location of the army when he reaches the British line. But you have some time while we go to the fort. Please, take care of her." Taking a moment to tell Peggy, "Ma'am, I am so sorry that your husband has left you here, and I promise to do everything I can to get you reunited with him. None of this was your fault," Ben turned to the others, nodding before following Washington out of the door and down the stairs.

Grace shifted her focus back to Peggy, who was still crying. "Come on now, you can't fool me. Even if you had no clue that he would run so quickly, you knew that he was making plans for you in case he did have to run. Even if you knew nothing at all of his activities, he would have told you about what to do in case he had to leave rather abruptly. And I know that you are aware of more than let on. Who else could have put General Arnold in contact with Major Andre? I promise you that I won't say anything to Ben or the others, but I know that this delirium is all an act. What Benedict needs now is for you to pull yourself together, gather your things, and join him wherever he is going. You know much more than you are letting on, and I am the only one who knows that."

With a deep sigh, Peggy sat up, buttoning her dress again and beginning to fix her hair. "I truly am sorry for that outburst," she said, wiping at her cheeks. "But it worked, did it not? Before he left, Benedict told me that I had to play the innocent, abandoned wife, or they would try me too."

"To be fair," Grace confessed, "I have had to act for the last day or so as well. I'm not expecting - it was an excuse for me to talk to Ben about the general, and to keep you and General Arnold distracted with the news while Washington and the others tried to figure out what to do."

"I do hope we can be friends, after all of this," Peggy told her, standing and smoothing out her dress. "We have known each other for so long now, it would be a shame to lose that."

"Of course. We do what we do for the men we love," Grace assured her. "And for the causes we believe in. But that does not make either one of us terrible people, and it certainly does not stop us form being friends."

Peggy went to the window, seeing that Washington and the rest of the men had already ridden out towards West Point. Turning back to where Grace was still sitting on the bed, she sighed, saying, "All I can think of now is what they will do with John. They surely execute spies…"

"They do," Grace told her, "but they will surely give him some degree of mercy. He is an officer, first and foremost. They will give him the honor he deserves, if he does not get out of there. I know everything you've told me about John Andre… it makes me think that he could come up with an ingenuitive way to escape."

"I should pack my things, and let you get back to packing yours, since General Washington wants you all to leave as soon as possible. I do not know the next time I will be able to see you," Peggy sighed, giving Grace a hug. "Please be careful. I wish you and your husband all of the best, and I hope you two have a beautiful life together."

"Give the general my regards," Grace requested, heading for the door. "And I wish you two all of the best as well. I will write, I promise. Even if there is no way I can visit, I will write." Leaving Peggy to begin packing her things, Grace went back to the room that she and Ben shared, starting to put their things in the bag they had brought. They would be riding out almost as soon as the men returned from West Point, still reeling from the loss of one of Washington's most trusted generals.


	18. Nathan Hale

It was growing dark when Grace saw Anna off from camp. She had stayed there for a few days after bringing in information about Arnold, and now had to head back to Setauket to continue her work. Hugging her friend goodbye, Grace wished her a safe trip back, making Anna promise to, "Give Abe and Mary my regards, and give Thomas a hug for me. I hope I can see them again soon."

"I will. You keep Ben right in the head for me while I'm gone, Mrs. Tallmadge," Anna instructed as they walked towards where she would be meeting an outfit headed to the island. "He has been under a lot of pressure lately, and with Andre and Arnold… well, we have all been stressed. But this is all on his shoulders, as the head of intelligence."

"Stop calling me that. You and Caleb keep calling me Mrs. Tallmadge... you know we aren't officially married yet." Grace nodded, helping her get onto a horse and tying her things to the saddle. "And don't worry, I'll make sure he's alright. You be careful out there, especially crossing into British territory. I know you have a guard, but still, I can't help but worry on these roads."

"Thank you. And even though you two aren't married yet, that doesn't mean Caleb and I don't have the right to bother you about it. We had been betting on you two for years."

Grace watched Anna and a couple of scouts ride away, heading back to the tent she and Ben shared when she could no longer see the group on the road.

Ben himself had left to meet with Washington, discussing a new proposal for spying tactics in the south and talk about the military tribunal that had been assembled to try John Andre. There was talk of wanting to trade Andre for Benedict Arnold, but the idea had been swiftly dashed. Now there was only the control of West Point to question - Nathaniel Greene was in charge now, Washington wanting to keep him there since he had been able to settle the men after Arnold had defected - and what to do with Andre. Ben had been interrogating him for a while, and had gotten a lot of valuable information, but there was still much to be done before Washington decided what fate he was to meet.

For a while, Grace sat up to read, but she grew bored and thought of heading outdoors again. So she grabbed a candle and headed towards the tent that had drawn her curiosity all day. Two men stood outside guarding it, but Grace just had to smile at them and hold up the basket that she had grabbed on the way there. "Just bringing the major a late supper."

They waved her through, Grace finding Andre sitting up and drawing a portrait. He was surrounded by drawings and writings, many of which would never make it to their intended recipients. He set his quill down as she came in, looking over to her as she set the basket on his table. "And who might this lovely young lady be? Ah, thank you."

"My name is Grace. Grace Tallmadge. And you are not going to tell anyone, let alone my husband, that I am here," she instructed, gesturing for him to eat. "I'm here because I wanted to see the man who was my husband's counterpart, the man who helped to turn one of our most valiant generals. I also came to bring you a message."

"Oh? From who?" Andre asked, watching Grace closely as she took over the only other chair in his tent. "Surely General Washington would have sent Major Tallmadge himself with a message, so it must be someone that goes through less conventional channels."

"Peggy Shippen. Peggy Arnold now. The woman who really turned General Arnold for you, and who put him in contact with you. You see, we've met in passing, when you would visit her at Judge Shippen's home in Philadelphia," she reminded him as he began eating slowly. "But I would expect you not to remember. You had more than me to be concerned with. But Peggy sends her regards, and wants me to remind you that you will be in her thoughts for the rest of her days, and hopes that in the end, she will be in yours."

"She will," Andre responded immediately. "She will. It's tomorrow…" He sighed, breaking the eye contact that he had held for so long. "I myself have not fully come to terms with it. But I will walk to my death courageously tomorrow. I trust you and your husband will be there."

Grace nodded solemnly. "We will be. I am quite sorry, major. No officer should have to suffer the indignity that you must, being hanged. But it is a fate befitting a spy, and I can understand why General Washington would likely make that decision. I've heard tell he has set on the idea, instead of a firing line, even though my husband has gone to try to campaign for one. I really am sorry, though."

"Thank you," Andre said, assuring her that, "I do not blame you in the slightest. You had nothing to do with General Washington's decision. Please, if you see her, give Peggy my love. I will not be able to say anything else to her, but please, pass along the message for me. I would like to write a letter, but they would surely destroy it, thinking it some sort of secret message."

"I will do my best," she promised, standing. "I must be going, since it is getting late. But I truly am sorry. I have no idea what to say to someone who is about to meet their death, but you will be in my prayers, Major Andre. And I pray that you do not suffer long."

Leaving Andre's tent, she bade his guards goodnight and went back to her own, where she changed and got ready for bed, laying out a dark dress for the next day and making sure that Ben's best uniform was laid out as well. He would be the one escorting Andre to the makeshift gallows that they would be most likely using. Grace would join him there, Caleb having promised to travel with her to witness the execution.

She had just gotten into bed when Ben came in with Washington's final verdict, telling her solemnly that, "He is to be hanged." He took off his coat and hung it by the door of the tent, getting ready for bed as Grace thought.

"Washington sounded set in his decision. I can understand why you couldn't change his mind," she said, Ben blowing out the candle and coming over to join her in the small bed that they shared. "I wish he had a more fitting death, but I'm sure we would all be hanged as spies if they caught us, even those of us who are officers."

Ben sighed, kissing the top of her head as Grace moved closer to him. "There's something I have been thinking about, someone that I can't seem to get out of my head. Gracie, have I ever told you about my friend Nathan from Yale?"

"You mentioned him a few times when you came back from school when there was a break between terms, or for Christmas, during our conversations after the tavern had closed. You two seemed quite close," Grace remembered, putting her arm over him as she laid her head on his chest. "And you wrote about him, back before your letters had just stopped and you were constantly moving with the army, telling me that he had died on a mission into enemy territory."

"We were roommates at Yale," Ben told her, the words floating into the cool night air. "We became close friends almost as soon as we met, and he ended up joining the army around the same time I did. He volunteered for a spy mission early on, but the army had little covert experience back then, in the fall of '76. They sent him in with his diploma and a few papers, saying that he was a teacher. That was his only cover - no alias, no other documents, nothing. It wasn't long until he was captured and hanged for being a spy. Nathan is part of the reason that Mr. Sackett and I came up with so many code names and procedures for passing messages. He is the reason you had to sneak out into the coves and sign your letters as Miss Mary Floyd. I couldn't risk any more of my friends' lives." He ran a hand through her hair, playing with her curls absentmindedly. It helped, somehow. "I can only think that tomorrow, I am going to be no better than the men who executed one of my closest friends."

"Ben, he is a spy, you must remember. He has gotten more of our friends and our men killed than Nathan ever did. It all depends on what side you're on," she said, looking up at him in the bit of moonlight that made its way into their tent. "A spy is a spy. They killed Nathan for the same reason Andre is going to be hanged, for spying and moving information in secret. There is nothing we can do but go through with it."

Sighing, Ben lowered his voice and confessed that, "I still won't feel right doing it, bringing him there and setting him up to be executed."

"None of us will feel right watching it happen either, but it has to be done. I'm sorry, Ben."

"Me too, Grace, me too. You know, I love what I do. I love the fact that I am playing a part in freeing our country from King George. I love our ring and what we can accomplish working together. But sometimes, I wish we could just skip the war and end up in that dream you told me about - a nice house, a job that I do not have to risk my life for, a fairly quiet life where I do not have to help choose who lives and who dies," he admitted, his voice tinged with longing. "If there was any way I could trade this for that normal life, there are times like right now that I would do it in a heartbeat."

Grace held him close, saying, "Me too. But we have to get through tomorrow. And the day after, and the day after that, and every day until John Andre is no longer a thought lurking in the front of our minds. I just hope we can give each other some sort of… What is the word I want here? I honestly don't know, Ben. There are so many things… Stability? An anchor? I like that thought. Give each other an anchor, something to hold on to even when we have to go through with things like this, even through the worst of storms."

At that, Ben had to smile a bit, even though the execution would be on his mind for a while as he sat up, ruminating on what he would have to do in the morning. It would be a long time before he fell asleep, Grace sleeping peacefully in his arms well before he dozed off. "I don't tell you this enough, but I love you, Gracie."

"I love you too, Ben. And I would even if you were the man up there tomorrow, pushing Andre off of that platform," she yawned, closing her eyes. "No matter what happens in this war, I will love you."

* * *

A.N.: Thank you all for the positivity and the messages! They really mean a lot! I hated knowing that Andre was going to be executed, and seeing what it did to Peggy, but I imagine it had a big impact on some of the others as well. So here we go...


	19. Execution

_It was a chilly day as Grace was marched up the hill with the others, knowing full well that this would be one of the worst days of her life. She had been there before, watching the hangings of others in the war, their blue coats dangling in the wind for ages. But this time, it was different. This time, she knew that she would cry harder than she ever had, even though she had been to plenty of hangings after the British victory. She was led to a small area surrounded by soldiers, where a man in a familiar blue coat was standing, waiting for her. This was the only mercy that the redcoats were giving him, one last chance to say goodbye to her. He turned to face her, his expression set, determined to be stoic until the end._

 _Grace, however, already felt tears welling up in her eyes. She wrapped her arms around him tightly, Ben wishing more than anything that he could hug her back and keep her with him for years. "I love you," she whispered, starting to cry already, even though she had promised herself that she would keep her composure. "I love you, and I always will. Ben, I don't care what they say, you're a hero. I'm so sorry."_

" _I love you too," he promised, leaning closer to whisper, "Meeting you was the best thing that has ever happened to me. The day you agreed to marry me was the biggest blessing… Gracie, I'm sorry that you have to be here. You don't have to watch if you don't want to."_

" _No." She shook her head, trying to keep her voice level. "I will, at least until they blindfold you, because I know you'll want… you'll want that last bit of strength, and I'll want to keep you in my eyes for as long as I can. I love you."_

 _One of the British soldiers pulled at his shoulder, Ben telling Grace, "I love you" before being pulled away from her completely. Grace stood there for a moment, watching him being marched away._

 _He was led away by a strong group of soldiers, Grace heading back towards where a crowd had gathered by the gallows. A man in a red coat stood there, reading a formal execution order as Ben was marched up onto the gallows and secured in a noose. "The accused, Major Benjamin Tallmadge of the Second Continental Light Dragoons, having been found guilty of high treason, insurrection, and espionage against His Royal Majesty King George III of England, shall hereby be executed as a spy. As the condemned has spoken his last words to his wife, he shall be summarily hanged." The man stepped back, descending from the platform and taking a secure position amongst his fellow soldiers._

 _Grace watched, looking into her husband's eyes until he was blindfolded. She twisted her wedding band on her finger as the executioner stepped up and drew a deep breath. The masked man reached forward, pushing Ben off of the platform as Grace turned her head, not wanting to see him swinging from the gallows. Anna grabbed her immediately, pulling her into a hug as she cried out in pain, hearing the horrible cracking noise that would echo in her ears for the rest of her life. "Grace. Grace. Wake up. You have to wake up." Anna was shaking her shoulders. "Grace, wake up."_

Grace sat up in bed, tears dripping down her cheeks as she tried to catch her breath. Ben was still asleep, laying next to her. Still breathing, no scars around his neck. With a sigh, she laid back down, Ben putting an arm around her as he slept. "I pray that never happens to you," she whispered, watching his chest steadily rise and fall. He was covered in wounds as it was, scars from being shot and stabbed and injured in battle. She had been there to treat some of them, especially the childhood wounds. The scar she knew he still had on his knee when he fell off of a horse - they had all just turned twelve or thirteen then, and he, Abe, and Caleb had been racing while she and Anna watched, sitting on a fence. The scar on his shoulder from when he was helping his father build the new church - he, Abe, and Caleb had helped Reverend Tallmadge and Ben's brother Samuel work on it the summer that they were all sixteen. And all of the other wounds that she had heard stories about or helped patch up in camp. But there were no telltale signs of a hanging, and for that she was thankful. Laying back down, Grace fell asleep again, holding onto him tightly.

In the morning, Grace got up, letting Ben sleep in a little while longer. He would be escorting Andre there, so he could stay in bed for a little longer. As she dressed, Grace watched Ben sleeping peacefully, hopefully dreaming something nice. Wearing her darkest dress, a patriot blue one that she had made while she was working for Peggy, Grace pinned her hair up, trying not to think about what she was going to do that day. The entire day was centered around the execution, at least for the officers. There would be breakfast, and then they would all head for the makeshift gallows that they had set up. After the execution, they would head back and have a meeting, Grace going to change and meet up with Anna, since they had no part in the meeting. Then there would be a sense of restlessness and uncertainty in the camp, she was sure. Washington was having her, Anna, and Ben for dinner, along with a few others, and then they planned on retiring early.

When Grace had finished getting ready, she gave Ben a kiss goodbye. He smiled in his sleep, mumbling something along the lines of, "I love you, Gracie" before rolling over. Grace took a deep breath, heading out of the tent and going to eat what little breakfast she could stomach.

Caleb met her after she had tried to eat, since they were going together. They said little on their way to the grounds that had been set up outside of the camp, tying up Caleb's horse near a couple of others. There was a group gathering already, waiting in the chilly air. Some of them were soldiers, some of them were from the nearby town, and others were curious onlookers who had come to see what the buzz was all about. The executioner leaned on a tree, his face already covered as another man in a blue coat talked to him. Two soldiers stood at attention on either side of their makeshift gallows, just in case anything happened. "This is horrible," Grace whispered, taking Caleb's hand as they made their way through the crowd to the front. "I don't mind hanging a spy at all, but some of these people are just here because they enjoy it."

Caleb agreed, coming to a stop at the front of the grup, as close as they could get to where the soldiers stood on guard. "It ain't right, coming out here to watch a man die if you don't know him or if you ain't got any business being here. It's just plain wrong."

They watched as Washington and Hamilton arrived, taking their positions. Other officers joined them soon after, forming a block of men in blue coats, all of whom turned to look as Ben's carriage finally arrived. Major Andre got out, Ben taking one of his arms and a private taking the other, leading him towards his death. Andre shook his hand when Ben turned him over to the executioner, watching him take a few steps away to join Grace and Caleb. Ben turned to look at Grace, taking her hand and running his thumb over hers. They didn't need to say anything to know what the other was thinking, Grace simply leaning her head on his shoulder for a second. Ben kissed her cheek as they turned to look at the man who was about to read the execution order.

Clearing his throat to get everyone's attention, the man walked forward, ceremoniously unrolling a piece of parchment. Andre had looked to the executioner, putting the noose over his own head and tying his own blindfold. "The accused, Major John Andre, having been found guilty of espionage against America, shall hereby be executed as a spy. If the condemned has any last words, let him speak them now."

Andre spoke loudly, trying to control his voice in his last moments. Lifting one corner of his blindfold to look over the crowd gathered at his feet, he told them, "I pray that you all bear me witness, that I meet my fate like a brave man." He nodded, finishing his statement as the executioner pushed him forward a bit, off of the platform.

There was no terrible cracking noise like Grace had been expecting, but he did swing a bit, slowing with every move. She stared at the spectacle of the hanging for as long as she could take it, finally turning to Ben, who put his arms around her and let her bury her head in his chest. He hardly finished, watching his British counterpart hanging until Caleb leaned over, whispering that they needed to give him some mercy. Grace felt him nod, Ben taking a half step back to whisper, "Caleb and I have to pull him down a bit more. It wasn't a clean hanging."

Grace let him go, taking a deep breath as she watched Ben and Caleb head over to Andre, pulling on his legs until they were sure that there was a clean break. As a few more soldiers came to take him down, Ben came back, pulling Grace close to him. It was only later that she would remember that his eyes were red, but he never let himself fall apart. "I'm sorry," he whispered, Grace speaking into his chest as she told him that it was alright, that it was his duty and he was just carrying it out. She couldn't blame him.

"Let's go," Ben proposed, taking her hand and heading towards the carriage that had been parked a little ways off. "Caleb, we'll meet you back at camp."

It was a somber ride back, the two of them holding hands and saying little. Neither of them quite knew what to say. Ben had never had to be part of someone's death that personally - he had shot people, he had run soldiers through with a bayonet in the heat of battle, but never anything as arranged, as well-planned, or as orderly. It had always been in battle, but this felt different. The weight it carried sat on all of them, every person who had had a part in Andre's capture, trial, and execution. "I'm sorry you had to be the one to do that," Grace finally said, her voice cracking a bit from not being used a lot.

"It's fine," Ben assured her as they reached the camp, where people were slowly arriving back from the hanging. "If I had been captured by the British, Andre would have been the one to ensure that I was hanged."

"Ben, I don't want to think about that… I've already had a nightmare about that once, and I do not want to think of it again," she confessed, accepting Ben's hand as she hopped out of the carriage. Ben said a few words to the driver before walking with her towards their tent. "I'm just sorry that you had to do that. He was a good man doing his job."

Although Ben had to go meet with Washington and a few other officers, he stopped in their tent with Grace, who would be going to see Anna soon. He took a seat next to her on the bed, wrapping his arms around his wife. "Thank you for being there. It means a lot, having someone to look to when I have to do things like that, and someone who knows what it's like while you try to move on from having to have been there."

"Ben?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you for taking mercy on him."


	20. Life in Camp

New Windsor, New York, was a lot better than their last campsite, most notably because Washington, Hamilton, Lafayette, and Ben - and thereby, Grace - were quartered in a real house. Anna was close by, setting up a settler's cart nearby and selling different goods. She had finally left Setauket for good, deciding to follow the Continental army instead of being subject to Simcoe's increasingly violent rule. Everyone had settled in well, and they had continued their spy work, with Anna and Grace keeping their ears open all of the time.

Grace had earned the scorn and envy of the other women in the camp almost as soon as she had arrived. She and Ben shared a small bedroom on the second floor of the house, all the way down the hall. Hamilton was next to them, then Lafayette, and Washington was given the master bedroom. This was the first thing the women held against her, her having a real roof over her head and a decent bed while they all slept in tents or carts. They also disliked the fact that Ben seemed so devoted to her, since a group of them had been trying to catch his attention. Grace had to admit that he was "quite the catch" as they called him, among other things.

They would always whisper when she was called away, either by a messenger or by Ben himself. Then there were the snatches of gossip that she would overhear while she was working or heading towards the river to work, and the mumblings of the soldiers themselves. And the things that Anna would tell her that they were saying, since she always asked to hear the nastiest of the rumors and the nicknames. The few men that dared to say anything to her face as she passed would certainly be shut up by their compatriots, but it still bothered her.

So Grace went to work in the medical tents, where there was less time for gossip and more of a focus on healing and closing up wounds. Besides, there were only a few women working there, and most of them were older, much kinder women than those who spent their days sewing, doing laundry, or cooking for the camp. She enjoyed the work and talking to the injured soldiers about what they wanted to do if they were given leave, and she had no qualms about sitting with a dying man and talking to him as if she were his wife, his mother, or his daughter. There were a good number of them after every battle who would be in the throes of blood loss or blinding pain, who genuinely believed she was a relative. And if it helped to put their minds at ease, Grace didn't mind doing it.

She had come home for lunch, having a bite to eat in the house's kitchen before going upstairs and getting some cleaning done. There was still time before she had to head back. It had been a slow day, with just a few soldiers getting sick enough to come to the medical tents, and only a couple still in bad condition. The rest were getting better, some of them being released after the head doctor approved. Dr. Wippold was a nice man, and Grace liked working with him. He would joke with the soldiers all of the time, trying to keep their spirits up even if he knew they were a lost cause.

Deciding to head down to Anna's cart and say hello, Grace set out, coming up on a group of women who were headed the same way. She walked quietly, listening in on what they had to say. Since they were going through the tents, she could always duck behind something in case they noticed. "I think it's so funny that that princess has no clue about Anna," one of the woman was saying. "She sits up there in her house with her major, working with that doctor friend of hers while they go off and have their secret meetings. And then she comes home and has dinner at her high and mighty table and thinks their marriage is the best."

"Well I've heard that they ain't even really married," the woman on the left said, making the other two reel in surprise. "Oh, yeah, they live together, and she has a ring, but it was never real, not in front of a priest or anythin'. Just a harlot and her unfaithful sham of a husband, thinking they're all high and mighty up in that house. Now Tallmadge, he's a looker."

"I don't blame her one bit for shacking up with him. It's just funny that he's got that Anna now, while she thinks she's his wife, parading around with him in camp."

"At least she can tell that none of us want to associate with her… except for that Anna woman with her cart, but I suspect that's just to keep her off of her and the major's backs while they carry on in the tents."

Smiling to herself, Grace came up to Anna's cart, telling her friend hello. "Well, rumor has it that - ah, all of the rumors are the same anyway," she told Anna, taking a seat beside her. "How has business been going? It looks like you've got some new things in. Or at least a whole lot of kettles."

"Oh, it's been going fairly well," Anna said, searching around inside her cart for a few more things to set out. She emerged with an armful of objects - some vegetables, bolts of cloth, sewing supplies, trinkets, anything she could think of that people would want. "You know, I've heard we're going to get rain soon, and I really should bring all of this in, but business has been good. I want to see if I can get anything more before I close up for the night."

"Something doesn't feel right," Grace confessed, helping Anna set things out. "Maybe it's just all of the gossip in camp and out here. Or the rains. Maybe it's something else, I'm not sure yet. But I have a bad feeling, Anna. Living like this is making me anxious. I mean… I have you and Caleb and Ben, and the women in the medical tents, but I wish… I wish they would at least tolerate me. I don't need to hear about how I'm a harlot and how Ben is cheating on me with you and… all of the comments from the soldiers, asking how much I charge Major Tallmadge or what I do to make him treat me so well. I detest it."

Anna reached out and gave her a hug, taking her friend by the shoulders and reminding her of the truth that, "You are a brilliant woman, and an amazing… part of this cause. Not to mention a wonderful wife - you know, I think I know how you can fix that bit of gossip, actually. You just need the reverend and General Washington. It won't be anything as fancy as a church wedding, but it would be official."

"Ben wants to wait until the 4th of July of whatever year the war finally ends. But thank you, it does mean a lot. I know you worry about so much too, what with your cart, and your part in all of this, and with Selah away… This is all so much different from what we had five or six years ago. Sometimes I wonder what our lives would have been like if we had made a few different choices back then. Or what things would have been like if we didn't grow up down the road from Abe, Caleb, and Ben. Nothing would be the same."

"It's our choices that make us who we are," Anna reminded her as she double-checked the kettles that she had hanging from the side of the cart. "And they all come back to us, the good and the bad alike. If we hadn't grown up next to them, you wouldn't have grown up alongside Ben. If your mother wasn't as involved in the church as she was, you wouldn't have spent all of your Sunday afternoons with him while she and his mother led their Bible study groups. If we had written the boys off and not become such a close group as children, you and Ben wouldn't have developed feelings for each other later on down the road. Everything we do has a ripple effect, even if we cannot see it at the time. Who knows what our decisions in this war will bring us - or will bring our country."

They sat and talked until Grace had to go back to the medical tents, working on stitching up a man's arm after he had fallen from his horse on a scouting mission. It was curious, she thought, that even the soldiers who jeered at her or talked about her and Ben were incredibly grateful when she gave them a shot of rum and sewed their wounds up, or brought them back from the brink of death when they got too ill. But she shrugged it off, reminding herself of the few true friends that she had in camp.

Ben was gone during dinner, as were half of the others living in the house. Grace ended up eating with Hamilton and talking about the issues that he was having with Congress, which he had been petitioning for more money for ages. The troops were underpaid and underfed, and the officers were feeling the heat that came with it. BUt they made do, and tried to quell the dissenters every time they popped up. Hamilton excused himself to get to work answering some letters for Washington, Grace heading upstairs to do some reading, even though she could hardly concentrate.

Restlessly, Grace got up and went to the window, looking out over the camp. She could see the outlines of tents, with fires dotting the landscape periodically. Some of the men could be seen walking around, eating their supper and talking. Off in the distance, there was the camp followers' area, where fires were glowing and the women were finishing up their last chores for the day. The outline of Anna's cart was barely visible, but Grace knew where it was. She turned around as the doorknob turned, Ben coming in to say hello.

He looked exhausted, but there was a spark of an idea behind his eyes as he shed his coat and set his boots by the door. "In two days' time, I'm leading a group of men on a raid of Fort St. George. The Setauket hay stocks."

"That's wonderful," Grace smiled, sitting down on the end of the bed. Maybe that was what she had an uneasy feeling about. The raid had so much potential to go wrong, especially if they just ran into a British fort. But she smiled anyway, telling him that she was, "sure that you'll do great. You know Setauket so well, you should be able to take it back."

"We're just going to burn the fort down, not to take it back quite yet. But you are going to have to pack. I've arranged for us to stay at Whitehall tomorrow night. We can have dinner with Abe and Mary, and get a decent night's sleep before the raid. As long as we're not spotted, we can stay there tomorrow night and visit our friends."

"You have no idea how welcome that news is," she sighed, Ben coming to sit down next to her.

He regarded her carefully, finally asking, "What's been troubling you? You've had this… this look about you for the last few days, like something's wrong."

Grace shook her head, waving away the idea. "It's nothing serious. I just absolutely detest listening to some of the things the women in camp say. And the men too. I got to hear about how you're cheating on me with Anna, even though I'm not really your wife. And how I sit up here and do nothing, like a queen. All sorts of ridiculous things like that." She didn't mention the sense of unease that she held about the upcoming raid, or the other things that had been bothering her. Ben already had enough to deal with. "Nothing too serious."

Shaking his head, Ben pulled her down with him, the two of them laying back on the bedspread. "Well, you deserve to be treated like a queen. I wish I could give you a life where the most troubling thing you had to think of was your social diary or what color dress you wanted to wear in the morning. A life where you could stay in one place and have the home you've always dreamed of. I know there is no way I could promise you all of that right now, but hopefully one day. I am no fan of the monarchy, but I promise I will always treat you like a queen, even if I cannot give you the life of one."

"You're a funny one, Ben Tallmadge," Grace smiled, giving him a kiss. "But I love you."

"I love you too."


	21. Stay Alive

_It was a cold day, but they had all been colder days recently. Grace could see her breath in the air as she stood on the hill of her old town. Setauket sloped upward, if you were headed into the town, but now it was looking down on the fort that had been built around Strong Manor. Well, what used to be Strong Manor. Fort St. George loomed at the edge of the town, an imposing fence built around it to keep the hay away from potential raiders. She had been inside a few times, delivering things to the troops, but it was incredibly different from Anna's home, the one she had stayed in when she first worked at the tavern, when Selah had still owned it._

 _As she looked around, she noticed that it was nearly silent. A few redcoats were marching nearby, but the hazy air smelled of gunpowder. The silence came from the dead laying around her feet, all soldiers that she recognized. The raid had failed, and they had been slaughtered. All of them had been shot or run through with bayonets, most of them already dead. A couple coughed or cried out every time they drew a breath, but the majority had already been put out of their misery._

 _Grace felt a hand grab at her skirt. She looked down to see a man she knew well covered in dirt and blood, the remnants of a battle that had become a disaster, a raid that he had led to its failure. She dropped to her knees, taking her husband's hand as he clutched his chest, a red stain steadily growing underneath it. "Gracie, I love you."_

" _Ben, no, I can get a doctor, we can -"_

" _No," he coughed, wincing in pain. "Gracie, I know I won't make it. By the time you got the doctor, I would be… I would be gone. Please, just stay with me until it's over. It hurts so much, and seeing you… seeing you makes it bearable."_

 _Trying not to cry, Grace looked into her husband's eyes, Ben clutching her hand. "This isn't supposed to happen."_

" _It's never supposed to happen," he coughed, trying not to focus on the pain. "Gracie, I love you. You have made the trials of this war so much more bearable, and you have made every moment of my life so much better. I wish… I wish I could give you the life you deserve." He paused, taking a deep breath. "Please… do everything you can… for our cause. March with General Washington… when we are victorious. I promise I will always love you. I just wish… I wish I could have more time. I'm so sorry."_

 _Grace gave him a kiss, whispering, "I love you too, Ben. I love you too."_

" _Could you please… when people were… dying, my father would…"_

" _I know," Grace nodded, watching as his breathing grew more shallow. She thought back to her days in the church, thinking of something that would bring him some sort of comfort. "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil: for thou art with me," she quoted, "thy -"_

" _Grace." Ben stopped her, everything gradually getting darker and darker. "Grace, I think… please don't leave until… it's so cold…" She lay down in the grass beside him, gently putting her arm over his stomach and holding him as closely as she could. She laid her head next to his, their noses nearly touching as a few tears fell from his eyes. "I'm sorry… it hurts… so much."_

" _I know, I know," she said, trying to keep the lump in her throat from cracking her voice as she ran a hand through his hair. "It's going to be alright. You know… it's an honor to be your wife. I will always be proud of it, and proud of you. I love you, Benjamin Tallmadge."_

" _I love… you too." She watched as he closed his eyes in pain, his breathing slowing until it stopped. It felt impossible that it could be real, but she couldn't shake herself out of it. She had feared for his life before, and she could only imagine what it was like when he had been wounded, thinking he was going to die. But now, she was here, she saw it happen, and Ben was gone. Ben was gone, and he wasn't coming back._

 _Sitting up slowly, Grace vaguely noticed that she was covered in blood. Someone was shouting in the distance, but all she could focus on was Ben. He was still so young, and could have done so much. She knew he felt horrible leading his friends to their deaths, and she hoped that she was able to push that thought out of his head. She would never be able to tell him anything again, never be able to walk around the camp with him at night, or help pass messages along, or offer her advice on different spy tactics. They would have no more moments like they did in Setauket, when he was teaching and she worked in Selah Strong's tavern - no more of their meetings after work, no more talking in the hayloft, no more laughing with all of their friends or heading to balls together. No more late-night conversations or looking forward to letters in the post. None of it would ever happen again._

 _The voice was getting closer, Grace finally looking around, trying to see if there were redcoats coming for her too. What she saw through her tears was something unexpected - a man in a blue coat was running towards her, telling her it wasn't real. Ben. Ben was running to reach her, but he had just died in front of her. She went to look down at his body, but the Ben running towards her kept yelling._

"Grace, Gracie, wake up." Ben was sitting up in bed, shaking her shoulder. She had woken him up, crying out for him and mumbling something in her sleep. "Come on now, wake up."

Bolting up in bed, Grace looked over at him, taking a deep breath. She pushed her hair out of her eyes, Ben drawing her close to him. She sighed, letting him hold her as she wiped at her cheeks. "What was it?"

"Whenever you go out on a mission, on a scouting trip, anything, I worry. I know in battle they wouldn't kill an officer unless it was an accident - they would want to capture you. But on missions like tomorrow's… I'm sorry. I know I worry too much, but -"

"I understand," he nodded, kissing the top of her head as he held her close. "But I'll be alright. The fort only has a few guards, and Abe and Mary got most of them to drink far too much at dinner. I wish we could have seen it, but we will know in the morning." They had arrived at Whitehall the previous afternoon, hiding out upstairs while Abe and Mary threw a dinner party for many of the British soldiers who were stationed at the fort. Once the soldiers had all left, they were able to come downstairs and eat. It was nice having a real home to stay in, but it was still nerve wracking having all of the soldiers so close. The rest of Ben's men would meet him in the morning - they were staying with relatives or patriot friends.

"I'm sorry I woke you."

"I wake you a lot too," Ben reminded her, keeping his voice fairly level as Grace calmed down. "When I have that dream about being shot again, and I wake up with a burning pain in that scar. When you're not here, I have to just think of you, and…" He shook his head, sighing. "We are both troubled people, trying to build this country and keep the colonies in line."

"One day," Grace assured him, "we will not have to worry about things like this. They will all be terrible memories of the past."

They laid back down, still not letting go of each other as they dozed off again. Ben had to leave in the morning to meet the rest of his men, right after breakfast. Abe would be heading out into the town to pick up a few things for the farm, so he could be out of the way entirely. Judge Woodhull had business in the town as well, which left Mary, Thomas, and Grace sitting in the parlor, waiting for any sort of news.

Thomas sat on the floor, playing with a few tin soldiers, while Mary worked on fixing one of Abe's shirts. Grace stood at the window, trying to see anything. Ben had promised that he would ride back for her, have her grab their bag, and then head directly back to camp once the fort had been burned down. For now, though, all she could do was wait, hoping that the raid could be pulled off.

Turning back to look at Mary, Grace admitted, "I had always thought you had a relatively easy part in all of this, just making sure Abe got home alright and ensuring no one discovered certain things - like the codebook, or what really happened to Ensign Baker. However, after Ben and I began writing, and became close, after we were engaged, I realized how difficult it is, having to sit here while those gentlemen put themselves in danger so often."

"And make rash decisions," Mary added, glancing up at Grace. "It is a very difficult job cleaning up after all of the messes that they get themselves in, and maintaining a facade of a normal life."

"Foreseeing their rash decisions and attempting to guide them away is a business in itself," Grace agreed, taking up her position at the window again. She couldn't see much, but there seemed to be a bit of commotion going on outside of the town. A couple of people had passed by, headed for the fort, even though there was no fire visible yet.

"May I tell you something?" Mary asked, looking concerned. "You may not like it, I must warn you."

"Of course." Grace looked back at her, waiting. "Anything."

Mary set her work in her lap. "When I first heard talk about Ben being… interested in you, I thought it would calm him. Even back then, he was a rebellious one, even if he hardly showed it. I thought it would calm him, rein him in and prevent him from turning his friends into rebels as well. But then I saw how dedicated he was, and hoped that… I'm sorry, but I hoped your father would force you to break off your engagement, if only for your own good. I know we were never close as children, but I hated seeing you being led to love a man who had no real hopes aside from teaching, at least until the war began. But after Abe got involved, after I began to see how awful the British are, I felt terrible for thinking that, for thinking that he would ruin you. When Abe told me that you two had struck up your writing again, I was happy for you, even if you did not hold in your hearts what you once held for each other. Then I heard you were engaged again, and… it seemed like all had been healed. Even if things are nothing like they used to be, I truly am glad that you two have each other. I am so sorry that I had hoped otherwise."

"Thank you," Grace smiled, sitting in the chair beside her. "There is nothing you have to apologize for. We both came from Loyalist families, at one point in our lives. It's just that circumstances have changed, and we have had to make our own choices."

"There is one more thing," Mary admitted. "When we were younger, when you and Ben were first growing closer, I envied how much you two loved each other, how perfect I imagined your marriage would be. Abe and I have become like you two with time, but at first, I was incredibly envious of you. But I am glad to see that you two love each other just as much as you did back then."

"Mary, there is no need to apologize," Grace assured her, squeezing her hand. "I know how difficult it must have been, marrying Abe instead of Thomas. I'm glad you two have found each other, even if it took some time. Some women never get that."

They were interrupted by men yelling in the street, Grace going back to the window to see clouds of smoke billowing up from where the fort used to be. "Is it happening?" Mary asked, joining her. Her eyes widened as she watched the fort burn, Grace nodding in silence.

"I have to go." Grace hugged Thomas goodbye, promising that she would visit soon. Mary walked with her to the front hall, giving her a hug and wishing her luck. "Be careful in town. Be safe. Keep Sprout safe too." She grabbed her bag, heading for the drive. Plenty of people were running towards the fort now, but she could just make out a horse and rider coming the opposite way. Ben stopped just long enough to help her up onto the horse, and then they were off, headed towards the Continental camp. "I take it the raid was successful?"

"Extremely," Ben nodded, steering their horse further into the cover of the woods. "I wish we could have taken Setauket, but that wasn't the mission." There would be a lot more bad news before the war was over, but Grace was happy that they had their small victory that day.


	22. A Kidnapping

"Caleb's been captured," Ben said, walking into the medical tent where Grace had been checking on a few soldiers. "He's been captured on a mission, and I have to head back to Setauket."

Grace came over to where he was standing at the entrance to the tent, quietly telling him that it would be better if they talked outside, because, "Peterson just fell asleep, and he hasn't had much rest in the last couple of days." As soon as they were outside of the tent, however, she solidly told him to, "Go get him. Go get our friend."

"It isn't that simple, I'm afraid," Ben admitted, looking around and lowering his voice as he explained further. "I think we are going to have to trade a prisoner for him. Now I'm going to try to get Abe to build a false bottom into his wagon and smuggle me into York City -"

Grace scoffed, flatly telling him, "That's ridiculous. Ben, smuggling yourself into a redcoat stronghold will get you killed, guaranteed. It's absolutely ridiculous, Ben. There has to be a better way. A prisoner exchange or something. Something that isn't nearly as risky."

"No one would see me other than Caleb and the guard we'll knock out before we rescue him," Ben contradicted her, Grace pursing her lips as he laid out the plan. "There is no danger at all. Well, not much of one."

Shaking her head, Grace took his hand, nearly hissing, "There is always danger... our lives are about minimizing that danger and trying not to get ourselves and our friends killed! Ben, if you want to get yourself shot or hung as a spy… I'm sorry, that is just an absurd idea. There has to be something better. Please, come up with another plan. Anything that will get you home to me."

"Well, I'm setting out for Setauket now," Ben told her, remaining staunch in his opinion, "and I would rather you were not angry with me before I left. I'm sorry. Sometimes fighting this war involves risks and sacrifices that we would rather not have to deal with."

Grace had to step aside for a moment as Dr. Wippold entered the tent, carrying an armful of bandages and telling her that she would have to cut some more very soon if the men kept getting injured at this rate. When she was sure that he had started his rounds, she looked back to Ben. "Well I would rather you were not going to put yourself in such danger, but here we are. Please, be careful. Losing you… I cannot imagine it. No, I have had nightmares like that, and… I would rather not think of it."

"I'll be careful," he promised, giving her a kiss. "I'll be home before you know it." Ben would only tell her later about the daring plan he had come up with, kidnapping Abe and his father in exchange for Caleb and a 500 Pound ransom. And about how they had to shoot a few British officers that came upon them at the wrong moment, and how the exchange had gone wrong, resulting in so many deaths. When he returned with Caleb, Abe, and a dead body, there were enough things to explain without telling her all of the grisly details right away.

Grace went back to work, bandaging wounds and attending to soldiers who had fallen ill. She sat with one man for a long time, knowing that he was going to die soon. Dr. Wippold had told her, pointing out a man at the end of a row of beds and saying that he had come down with pneumonia and was not going to make it through the night. So she pulled up a chair next to him, talking about his home and his farm in Massachusetts while she cut more cloth for bandages. She told him stories about her childhood and about growing up on Long Island, and she helped him write a final letter to his family. When supper was brought around, she sat there and ate with him, even though he could only manage a couple of bites. It was dark out when his breathing grew shallow and began to rattle after every cough.

Sitting there holding his hand, Grace realized just how many times she had done this, how many times she had sat next to a dying man and recited the same Psalm, said the same prayer for his soul. All of the promises she had made to people on their deathbeds, and how quickly they were discarded while she and Dr. Wippold moved the bodies, wrapping them for burial in order to free up a cot for another man. She felt bad, thinking that if it were Ben in one of these beds, and if there was someone else sitting there with him, she would want his last requests honored. Resolving to post the letter to the man's family in the morning, she sat up with him until late in the night, when he looked at her, coughing with every other word. "Mrs. Tallmadge… thank you. You let me… leave this earth… in peace… knowing my family… will know that.. I died a brave… a brave man… who loves them… with all he is… thank you…"

He turned his head to look away, his breath slowing until it stopped. Grace sat with him for a moment more, saying a silent prayer and pocketing the letter that she had helped him write. She stood up slowly, making her way towards the front of the tent, where Dr. Wippold was checking on a man whose leg he had amputated earlier in the day. "Doctor, he's passed."

Dr. Wippold nodded, telling her to, "Head to bed. You've been here for a long time, and you helped that man leave this earth comfortably. You're a good woman, Mrs. Tallmadge. And like I always tell you, call me James."

"Thank you… James. Have a good night."

"You too," he told her, both of them turning to see the men staggering into the tent.

Ben held Caleb up, both of them covered in blood. Caleb had been scarred horribly, and was still bleeding. "Here, get him down," Grace said, taking his other arm and leading him to a bed. "Come on, there you go, down we go." She helped him set Caleb in a bed, the doctor coming over and immediately getting to work. Grace ran for a needle and thread while Dr. Wippold washed out his wounds, Caleb gritting his teeth. As soon as she had handed the doctor the needle, Grace dashed out of the tent, returning with a bottle of brandy. "Here, you're going to need this," she coaxed, Caleb accepting gratefully.

Ben explained what had happened, how they had gotten him back and how he had been tortured, and how Abe was hiding in the barn with the corpse of Judge Woodhull, who had been killed when they were ambushed by a band of Queen's Rangers. Grace and Dr. Wippold kept working, getting as many of Caleb's wounds patched up as they could. Caleb, to his credit, hardly complained out loud, but kept drinking as they worked.

"You should make it alright, but you're going to be in a world of pain for a long time," Dr. Wippold said, stopping to get more thread as Grace dipped a rag into a bucket of bloody water, trying to clean the dirt and grime off of more of his injuries.

"Already there, Doc," Caleb winced, taking another swig of brandy. "Nothin'll be worse than Simcoe." He laid back, closing his eyes and trying not to focus on the pain radiating through his body.

Ben stood there watching for a while, until he realized there wasn't much that he could do for him. He said a few words to Caleb, who was, by that time, halfway conscious from the blinding pain and the brandy, before telling Grace that he was going to head back to the house and wash all of the dirt of the raid off of him. She promised that she would be back soon, hopefully with good news. She looked back to Caleb as Ben left, pursing her lips and starting a new row of stitches. "I don't know how he survived that much," she whispered to the doctor, who heartily agreed.

"Any normal man would have died. But Brewster has always been something special. Hand me that rag, will you?"

They worked by candlelight for another half hour, finally stopping when the worst wounds had been cleaned and sealed. Caleb was still floating in and out of consciousness, which Grace was thankful for. At least he wouldn't feel all of it. Stepping back, Grace finally took the complete sight of him in. He looked awful, covered in stitches, his clothes still bloodied. But he had survived Simcoe's interrogation techniques, for better or for worse.

"Head on home," Dr. Wippold told her when they had finished putting things away. "I'll watch him until Dr. Jones gets here to take over the night shift, and I'll make sure he knows to tell you and the Major if anything changes. And I'll take care of our deceased friend over there."

"Thank you." Grace cleaned herself up, washing the blood off of her hands before heading for the house. It was quiet when she got there, but then again, it was nearing midnight. Lafayette had gone to sleep already, and she knew that Hamilton would be up in his room, either reading or catching up on writing, writing his wife, his sister-in-law, or Congress. It was always one of the three, but she could never guess who. Washington too would already be asleep, since he had an early meeting scheduled with some of his generals.

She had gotten halfway up the stairs when she felt a hand on her waist. "Ssh, it's me. Don't scream." Without a candle, it was hard to see, but she could make out the faint outline of Ben in the moonlight, looking like he had just come back from throwing the bathwater outside and getting a bite to eat. "I'm sorry if I was unfair to you earlier. You had every right to be worried." He leaned forward and gave her a kiss, adding, "I'm glad I'm back, and we're mostly alright, if a bit worse for wear. I missed you."

"I missed you too." Grace had to gasp as he gently pushed her against the wall. "Ben -" He cut her off, leaning in to kiss her again. She couldn't say anything as he pressed up against her, taking her face in his hands. He moved to kiss her neck, Grace objecting that, "Ben, anyone could walk out here right now."

"I don't care," he replied, leaning into her even more.

He had just reached her collarbone when they heard someone clearing their throat at the bottom of the stairs. Grace's eyes widened as she realized who was standing there, Ben taking a half-step to cover her. "Enjoying your night, Tallmadge?" General Washington asked, regarding the major with a smirk. He held a book under his arm like he had been up late reading near the fireplace.

"Ah, yes, sir," Ben answered, keeping his voice low. Grace held onto his arm for dear life, desperately trying to avoid eye contact with Washington.

"Well, I would recommend you move away from the stairs. You never know who could walk up on you," Washington suggested, his face betraying no hint of emotion as he spoke.

"Yes, sir." Ben agreed heartily. "Uh, goodnight, sir." He took Grace's hand, both of them taking the stairs two at a time to get away from the immense embarrassment they had just faced.

As soon as the door to their room was closed, Grace looked at him, whispering, "Of all of the people to walk over… I can't imagine how breakfast is going to be with him tomorrow."

"Well, that is a problem for us tomorrow," Ben shrugged, pushing her against the wall again with a rather aggressive kiss. "Now, where were we?"


	23. Mutiny

It was getting dark the next day when Grace and Anna made their way to the hay barn, where Abe had been hiding out. They had scrounged up a shroud to wrap Judge Woodhull's body in, and some food for Abe, who had been living off of what Ben had left him with the previous night. As they passed through the camp, Anna turned to Grace, asking, "Did you hear about Caleb?"

Grace nodded, shifting the basket she was carrying to her other arm as she talked. "Ben told me about it at supper. Apparently he had ridden out of camp and fell off of his horse in front of a band of scouts… thank goodness they were Continentals, since they brought him back here. Caleb wants to hunt Simcoe down and get his revenge. Honestly, I can't blame him, just seeing the results of what he went through…but he needs to be careful and give himself time to heal."

"No one deserves what Caleb went through by Simcoe's hands," Anna agreed, the two of them turning out of the camp and heading towards the barn. "I can hardly imagine what it must have been like… when Ben brought him here, I was surprised he had survived that much. I feel horribly for him, having to go through all of that for the cause, and then getting up and running off to find the man who mutilated him as soon as he was able to get on a horse. If he wants to get any better, he needs to give himself time. He'll catch something if he isn't careful, and that could be the end of him."

"You know, we would have never expected this when we were growing up. Everything seemed so easy back then," Grace mused as they approached the barn, looking over their shoulders to make sure they had not been followed. "Do you remember when the biggest things we had to worry about were keeping up the stock of ale, making sure people paid their tabs, and keeping the tavern clean?"

"And all of those times Selah and I would let Ben in after we had closed up, so he could talk to you while you cleaned? Or the times we would watch him walking you home from the tavern at night? We saw all of it, when you would walk together, when you first started holding hands as you walked, every time you fought over something and didn't hold hands as you headed away from the tavern," Anna admitted, knocking on the barn door to let Abe know that it was them. "I'm sure Abe has all sorts of stories from back then too."

Abe was sitting on the ground, leaning against one of the posts that held up the hayloft. "Stories from before the war came to Setauket?"

"From before the war came to Ben. He was the first of the rebels in our town, I believe," Anna told him, handing over the basket of food. She and Grace sat down with him as he ate, thinking back to times that seemed so long ago.

"Oh, yeah, I remember so much about it - when I was first getting my farm in order, and you and Selah had just opened the tavern under his name, when Caleb was off fishing half of the time and Ben was still teaching, before he went off to Yale," Abe recalled as he ate. "We had all started to follow our own paths in life, but we would still find time to meet up with each other, even if it was just for a drink or a bonfire in the woods."

Grace had loved those bonfires, where they would all sit and talk, eating whatever food they could scrounge up after a day of hard work. They would talk late into the night and head home, knowing that they would see each other in passing, whether it be in town or in church, but it wouldn't be until the next bonfire night or the next dinner party that they would all be together as a group. "Those parties that people would throw - they were all just excuses to get people to talk to each other and pair up, but they were fun, dressing up and going to eat, drink, and be merry with friends of ours that we had hardly seen after we had finished school."

"I seem to remember someone trying to get Caleb and Rachel - the grocer's daughter - to dance at a Christmas party," Abe said, looking pointedly at Anna.

She scoffed, defending herself. "That was back when Selah was courting me, and you were engaged to Mary, and Grace and Ben were first together, even if they hardly knew it. The whole town knew they would end up together well before they did. Caleb had been talking to Rachel for ages, and someone had to do something, or they would never have become so close. I did a good service to the community that day."

"Speaking of Caleb, how is he doing?" Abe asked, having heard about what he had done earlier in the day. "Did Ben get him back into the medical tents?"

"He's back there now," Grace assured him. "I saw to him myself, before I found the shroud. We brought everything we need to wrap him, whenever you're ready. Ben's arranging for a boat you can take to Setauket in the morning."

"Thank you. I'll get to work as soon as I'm done."

"We want to help," Anna said, "since he was like a father to me, and he did so much for Grace, we want to help. Even if he didn't do everything right, he was a good man, one who stuck with his beliefs until the evidence was too set against them for him to continue. And he loved his family and his town, more than anything. He deserves all of the help he can get."

"Are you sure?"

They were interrupted by the door opening, Ben and Caleb walking in to check on them. Grace stood, giving Ben a hug before looking Caleb over. "Are you sure you should be up and walking right now? You nearly died trying to find Simcoe."

"Ah, anything to see Woody," Caleb laughed, putting a hand to his chest and wincing as he realized just how injured he still was. "I'm sorry about your father. He was a right bastard. A good one, though."

"Everything has been arranged. We have a boat, and Caleb can take you back to Setauket, and afterwards, he can bring Mary and Thomas back here. They can join the camp followers, and Anna will see to it that they settle in well," Ben added, Abe nodding solemnly. "Now Caleb said that he had something to tell all of us, about the ring."

Caleb looked to Abe, admitting, "Simcoe knows you're Culper. I lost time, Woody. I don't know what I said, who I gave up - it could have been Mary, or Townsend -"

"We'll have Mary and Thomas out of Setauket soon, and if you told him about Townsend, we would have already read about his hanging in the paper," Anna contradicted, trying to give him some sort of hope. "I know you have no idea what you said, but I don't think you would have given them up."

Caleb shook his head, stressing that, "Simcoe thanked me. When they came to get me, he thanked me. I lost time… I could have named you or… or Grace, or any of them, and I wouldn't know. I could've told him everything about the ring, and I wouldn't remember saying shite."

"They can't get at us in the camp," Grace reasoned as they all began helping Abe prepare his father's body to be moved back to Setauket. "And if you're bringing Mary and Thomas back, that just leaves the Culpers. They would have been killed already if you had said anything about who they really are. I honestly don't think you told him anything that would really help him hunt any of us down."

"Major Tallmadge? Sir? Are you alright, sir?" Someone was knocking on the door, Ben striding over and sticking his head out to see who it was. "Yes, I understand. I'll be there momentarily. Ready the regiment to move against them. Yes, alert General Wayne as well, since so many of them are his men." He closed the barn door, looking back at his friends. "Half of the Pennsylvania regiment is mutinying. They've raided the armory and killed their sergeant."

Anna's eyes widened as she asked, "They aren't heading for the house and General Washington, are they?"

"No. They're marching for Philadelphia, to demand that Congress give them their pay," Ben explained, going over to give Grace a hug and a kiss. "Stay in the barn. All of you stay in the barn. It's safer here, while we get them under control. I'll come back for you when it all gets resolved."

Ben headed for the door, Grace following him out. "Be careful," she whispered, giving him a kiss as they stood outside. "I love you."

"I love you too. Now go back inside." Grace watched him go, slipping back into the barn when Ben had reached the main camp. The others were almost done preparing the body, so she joined them, the group working in silence until they were done. No one quite knew what to say, so Grace sat down, telling them, "Abe, I just wanted to say something, since I know I can't go to the funeral. When I first met your father, he was tutoring my brother, who was going to study the law before he became a redcoat. We would always come over together, since my mother wanted all of us out when she was cleaning the house. You and I had talked in school and played with the rest of our little group when we had little work to do, but that was when I first met him. We took to each other immediately, and I was so thankful when he offered me work once my father had passed. We may not have always agreed, but he was a good man who cared about his family and his town deeply."

Caleb nodded, seeing that it was his turn. "I'll be in the cove, but you know I would want to be there in person, Woody. All of us do. Your father… he annoyed the hell out of us sometimes, but now that you've got Thomas, you know it was all because he cared about you. About all of us."

"He was like a father to me," Anna added, "even after we had drifted apart. He was always kind to me, even though I was never going to be his family. Even then, he was so giving, and he was constantly kind to Selah, even though it was no secret that he was a rebel early on. Your father never gave up on him, and in the end, he saw that we are on the right side."

"Thank you, all of you," Abe said, looking at all of his friends. "I wish you could be there… as you were when my mother passed. And like we were for Ben, when his mother and his brother died. I know you would be there, if it were not for the times we are going through."

They spent the next couple of hours in the barn, talking and reminiscing about life in Setauket, before the revolution had come, as well as catching each other up on what had been happening in the town, in camp, and on the road. Ben returned late that night, telling them that it was safe to go - Anna to the camp followers' area, Caleb back to the medical tent, and Grace back to the house. The mutinying troops were camped out a little ways away for the night, and planned on talking terms of surrender in the morning, when their leaders had some time to think. Ben assured them all that it was safe to travel, and just to be sure, he and Grace walked Anna back to her cart before heading towards the house on the hill.

Ben stopped her on the steps outside, explaining that, "I, and some of the other troops, are going to monitor them tonight. We'll be sleeping out at our posts. We aren't expecting any gunfire, but I would rather you stayed in the house."

Grace knew that even if she objected, she would not be able to sway him, so she kissed him instead, saying, "I know I always tell you this, but be careful out there. It seems unlikely that they would fire on you, but you never know. Goodnight, Ben. I love you." Ben gave her a final hug before going back down the hill to meet up with part of his regiment again.

Going inside the house, Grace intended to head upstairs and get ready for bed, but she saw the glow of the fireplace in the parlor, and, knowing someone else was still up, she decided to investigate. Walking into the room quietly, she found the Marquis de Lafayette sitting up reading aloud under his breath. He looked over when he heard her footsteps crossing the threshold, setting his book down. "Good evening, cherie. What are you still doing awake? It is nearly midnight. I am sorry if I disturbed you - reading aloud to myself helps my English."

"No, no, it sounds wonderful." Taking a seat next to him, Grace confided that, "There is a group of men threatening to mutiny. Ben and General Wayne have gotten them to agree to return, but they still have to discuss the terms of their surrender tomorrow. Tonight, though, they're guarding the encampment of the soldiers who decided to rebel, just in case they decide to march on our camp, or if they decide to try to leave for Philadelphia. I just worry that the men will keep doing things like this because Congress can't afford to pay them and fund the war."

"I am going to tell you something, cherie," Lafayette said, taking her hand. "There will be help on the way soon. France has decided to send help, and that will surely encourage the men."

"They're sending help?"

Lafayette nodded. "Armaments and ships, and money as well. We will have a chance at this war yet."

"We will," Grace agreed, suddenly filled with hope at the thought of aid from France, which the Continental army had been waiting for for months, "we will. And we will win."


	24. An Affair of Honor

Ben came back the next afternoon, finding Grace helping to clean the house. She had been sweeping the front hall when he came in, dark circles around his eyes from waiting up all night. "They agreed to surrender, and we are sparing the men, but their leaders must be made an example of. General Wayne has had them imprisoned and scheduled to be executed tomorrow."

"Executed?"

"As I said, he wants to make an example of them, in case any more of the men are thinking of mutiny," Ben told her as he hung his coat in the front hall. "I have to head back out this evening to check on the patrols, but I'll be back, I promise. Tomorrow afternoon, though, I have to be there for the executions."

Grace nodded, leaning the broom in a corner and walking with Ben up the stairs, telling him about her conversation with Lafayette the previous night and about how they would be getting help from the French soon, and about how Abe and Caleb left for Setauket and had hopefully gotten there by now. For his part, Ben listened as he changed out of his uniform, finally sitting down on the bed and telling her that he was going to relax for a few minutes and then get back to work drafting a letter to Selah Strong, who had written earlier in the week saying that he was planning to visit and inspect the troops on behalf of Congress. Grace left him there, knowing that she still had a lot of work to do herself. The house hadn't been cleaned in ages, and with two generals, a colonel, and a major living there and only her (and, on one occasion, Lady Washington) to keep it clean, work piled up quickly.

After sweeping the floors, dusting everything in sight, washing the windows, hanging up laundry, and airing out the house, Grace walked into the formal dining room, finding Washington at work with Lafayette and a few of his other senior commanders, all of whom were standing over a map. "Sorry, sir, I'll come back later."

"No, no, you may go about your work," Washington told her. To his generals, he explained that, "Mrs. Tallmadge has been instrumental to our progress so far. Anything you have to say, you may say in her presence."

"Thank you, sir," Grace smiled, heading to the window and starting to take down the curtains, which were in need of a washing. She tuned out much of what the men were saying as she dusted and polished the furniture, but eventually, she was compelled to gravitate towards their map. "You need a man in New York who isn't bound to his… practice." Having to choose her words delicately, Grace stressed that, "Our friends there now have businesses to maintain. We need a man inside their army like they had one in ours."

"I will consider it," Washington assured her, the other men looking to each other, clearly wondering what exactly she had done for the cause to merit the attention of their Commander in Chief. "That is also something for Major Tallmadge to consider. Where is the major? I have not seen him about recently."

"He returned from the, well, I hesitate to call it a line, but the line that had to be drawn between the camp and the men attempting to mutiny, earlier this afternoon. I believe he was working on catching up in his correspondence when I last saw him," she fibbed, knowing that Ben would have been done writing by then. It was approaching supper time, and even though the house did not all eat together, they would pair off or form small groups, depending on who was home at the time or if they were hosting anyone else. "Would you like me to track him down for you?"

Washington shook his head, thinking aloud. "I can wait to discuss some plans with him. General Lafayette and I will see you at supper."

Taking the curtains in her arms, Grace left the men to discuss their battle strategy while she set up to do more laundry, thinking that she could at least get them hung on the line before it was time for supper. As she sat outside, her sleeves rolled up so she could scrub away at the curtains, Grace hummed to herself, thinking back to the summer of 1773, when Ben had been working at the school and would come to visit every day. One particularly mild summer day, he had let his students go early, just so he could surprise her, and had run up behind her while she was doing laundry. She had ended up splashing him with water, the two of them sitting down and talking as Grace worked. They sat there catching up on everything that had been happening at the school and at the tavern, and everything Grace had learned while she was in town - whether anyone else had expressed revolutionary ideas, who was rumored to be courting who, and the regular comings and goings of the people of Setauket. Ben tried to drop in and visit as often as he could, and if any of his students saw him headed for the tavern, there would be whispers about him and "Miss Grace" floating around the classroom the next morning.

Thinking back on it, life had been so much simpler back in the summer of '73, when they had all just begun figuring out their lives. Grace and Anna would get up and help run the tavern, Selah dealing with all of the bills and buying whatever they needed, as long as one of them went to pick things up. They would cook and serve drinks, and occasionally have to deal with customers who drank too much or shouted their opinions too loudly, but it was hardly anything bad. Abe would be up early to tend to his fields, watering and weeding and constantly on the lookout for any sign of pests. Sometimes he would come into town to pick up supplies for his half-constructed house or for the farm, and he would drop by to say hello. Caleb was in town, learning the art of blacksmithing, something his father had pushed him towards. The other half of his time was spent on the whaleboats that occupied the sound, since he had loved the ocean from a young age. That was where he would end up, giving up his smith training entirely to pursue a life on the water. Ben was teaching, hoping to save up enough money to go to Yale. He would volunteer in his father's church, keeping the grounds clean and helping to fix anything that needed work, but his weekdays were spent at the school, and his weekends largely consisted of preparing lessons. He would, unfailingly, visit Grace after the tavern had closed and the last stragglers had been thrown out, talking with her while she cleaned and looking over what he would be teaching the next day. It was all so simple, without the worries that they had now. But she wouldn't trade it for anything, since the war was slowly bringing them closer to independence, a much greater goal than those they had held before.

When everything had been hung up and the wash water had been thrown out, Grace went back inside, thinking that she would wash up and then have supper, which the women who cooked for the soldiers dropped off every evening. She climbed the stairs slowly, worn out from a day of hard work. Washington and Lafayette were still in their meeting, Hamilton was holed up in the study, and Ben was nowhere to be found, or so it seemed.

As soon as she opened the door to their room, she smiled to herself, seeing Ben napping on the bed. He hadn't even thrown the blanket over himself - he must have fallen asleep almost as soon as she left. Grace sat down on the bed next to him, rubbing his shoulder. "Ben, c'mon, it's time for supper. You've been out for hours."

Groggily, he sat up, running a hand through his hair. "What time is it?"

"Nearly half-past six," she answered, Ben standing up and starting to ready himself to go inspect his troops. "You've been asleep for hours, but you look much better than you did when you came in this afternoon. Oh, and Washington wants to discuss an idea with you, planting Abe in Arnold's Legion."

"Yeah, I… yeah."

"Perhaps when you're more awake," Grace laughed, standing and coming over to join him at the small mirror on their dressing table. "After you get home from your patrol, after supper, you can talk with him."

The only talk that night was about the impending executions of the leaders of the mutiny. General Wayne had declared that they would be tied to posts and shot by their own men, which caused a lot of contention between the men and in the camp followers' area. Grace had heard a lot about it from Anna, who had been listening to the women's gossip as much as she could.

In the morning, Grace woke to find Ben getting ready to go out and inspect the troops. He would be out in the camp almost all day, maintaining order before and after the execution. "Ben?" She sat up in bed, pulling her hair back as he walked over.

"Good morning, beautiful." He bent down to kiss her as he finished buttoning his waistcoat.

"Good morning, dashing Major Tallmadge," she laughed, getting up to hug him before he left. She would spend her day inside, where it was quiet. Everyone in camp seemed to have a sort of nervous energy about them, knowing that the execution was coming up. Grace could hardly eat lunch, and she knew that Ben would hardly be able to eat, wherever he was in camp. When she saw General Wayne starting to assemble people, she knew that it was time.

Going downstairs to watch out of the front window, Grace ran into General Washington, who had stationed himself there. "I would say good afternoon, but in light of the circumstances," he shrugged.

"Hello, sir," Grace answered, taking up a position next to him as General Wayne began motioning for the firing line to step closer to the men who had been bound and blindfolded. "It's awful that this has to happen, but if it prevents more desertions… well, I guess it would be a good thing in the end."

"Yes. I do hope this is the last time we have to do this, though." He grimaced slightly as the volley of gunfire rang out, the men who had been tied up slumping on their poles. One man's blindfold caught fire, which was summarily put out.

"I'm sorry, sir, but I should be out there." Grace left the house, jogging down the hill and arriving next to Ben and Colonel Hamilton, who were watching as the bodies were being untied. Several of the executioners were trying not to look, some of them vomiting in the grass as they realized the weight of what they had done. General Wayne's voice rang out above them all, giving a lecture on the penalties for desertion that Grace tuned out as she slipped her hand into Ben's. He said nothing, continuing to stare expressionlessly as the bodies were hauled away towards the area that they were using as a graveyard.

They walked in silence through groups of the men, holding hands but saying nothing. Grace knew that this weighed a lot on Ben, since he was one of the officers sent out to negotiate a peace between the two groups. However, that would be pushed to the back of their minds as they rounded a corner, coming up on a group of men talking around a fire.

"... Tallmadge, parading around with that harlot he keeps up in the house like a princess. I heard tell they ain't even really married. And his father's a preacher. Can't imagine what he would say if he knew that weak little boy of his was sticking his sword into -"

"Lieutenant Davies, would you care to repeat that?" Ben asked, the two of them coming up on the group. The men looked over at him, Lieutenant Davies standing.

"I would, sir. You just had men murdered in cold blood for wanting to be paid as they should be. Meanwhile, you walk around with that trollop of a woman, living in a nice house and eating good food while the rest of us starve out here," the lieutenant answered, Ben glancing at Grace, who remained neutral, but held onto his hand steadfastly. "You're one of Washington's favorites, so no matter how badly you do on the field, or how many of your own men you get killed, he lets you stick your sword in that whor-"

"If you do not mind your tongue, lieutenant, I will have to see to it that you are -"

"Ah, everyone is saying it behind your back, Tallmadge. Everyone knows about it, about how you pretend to be so high and mighty but go on like the rest of us sinners -"

Grace could tell that Lieutenant Davies had touched a nerve. She had gotten used to hearing things like that from the men, from the women, from almost everyone in camp. But Ben hardly ever had to deal with the whispers that constantly went around about the two of them. "That's it, lieutenant, if there is no way I can officially have you reprimanded, I will have to propose an affair of honor and demand satisfaction."

"Ben, you can't… you know Washington hates dueling," Grace objected, turning to him. "Please. It isn't worth it."

"Washington will not know," Lieutenant Davies said, telling Ben that, "he will not have to know. I will accept, because you and that woman have no honor to defend. Dawn, in two days' time. The clearing outside of camp."

"It's on," Ben agreed, the two men shaking hands. "I will send my second to meet yours in the morning." As soon as they had gotten out of earshot of the men, Grace stopped him, begging him not to go through with this. But Ben refused to give up, explaining that Lieutenant Davies had not only disrespected her, but disrespected him and the Continental Army, and that could not stand, even if he had to go behind Washington's back to address it.


	25. The Ten Duel Commandments

That night, Grace sat up in bed, not able to concentrate on anything. She had already walked the house, absentmindedly cleaning and fixing things, thinking about Ben, who had gone off to make sure that the troops were performing their drills properly. He wasn't usually like this, but this decision had been rash, one made in anger, and one that would be difficult to undo. Caleb. She had to talk to Caleb the next day. If anyone could convince Ben not to go through with it, he could. As soon as Ben came in, she started trying to make him see reason.

"Is there any way you could reconsider this?" Grace asked, keeping her voice level. Maybe being reasonable would help, but she doubted it.

Unbuttoning his boots, Ben told her flatly that, "Caleb is going to talk terms tomorrow. I've chosen him as my second."

"Ben, please, think about this. This is against everything that Washington taught you -"

"They need to be put in their place. Making an example of this man will ensure that the other soldiers do not continue to harass and insult you in the camp," he explained as he continued to get ready for bed. "Defending your honor is the only solution."

Grace moved to sit at the end of the bed, watching him. "Making an example of a few men has gotten too many people killed already. And you don't need to defend my name. I know what I am worth, and I know what true honor means. It's not something that can be taken away by the men calling me names."

"That's the problem," he told her, going to the dressing table to wash his face. As he poured water into the basin, he continued, "It is not just your name that I have to defend. We are practically married, which means I have my name to defend as well as yours. I know they only call you Mrs. Tallmadge out of respect, but you are, and you will be, a Tallmadge, which means I have my own name to defend on that field. And I must defend the woman I love, even if it kills me."

Taking a deep breath, Grace had to drop a bomb on him. "Ben, if you get yourself killed out there trying to prove something like this, I will still love you. I know I will always love you. But it will be tempered with the knowledge that you so brashly, so willingly, deprived me of years of life with you. And if I ever forgive you for that, I will have to live with it even then."

Ben spun around, taking her by the shoulders and looking into her eyes as he replied, "I am doing this because I love you, and because I cannot let them continue to insult and degrade you among themselves. Socially and militarily, it may mean little, but this is about the proper courtesy that should be given to you as an officer's wife, an officer's fiancee. If I do not defend my name and yours, the men will realize that they can get away with things like this, and they will make stronger and stronger moves until I have no authority at all. I am defending you, but I am also defending my name, my rank, my title, all of it. I must do this, or I will effectively lose everything that I have worked for for so long. I don't care if you do not understand it, but I am going out to that field if Caleb cannot negotiate a proper apology from Lieutenant Davies, and there is nothing you can do to stop me."

"Very well," Grace resolved, thinking that the next night, on the eve of their duel, she would would come to him in tears if Lieutenant Davies was not swayed. She stood, making her way to her side of the bed. "I can only pray that Caleb and Lieutenant Davies' second can come to a peaceful resolution and that no blood will be shed." As she laid down, she had a brief idea to go directly to Washington, but she feared what he would do if he found out.

A few minutes later, Ben joined her, blowing out the candle and taking his side of the bed. He made no attempt to reach out for her, instead rolling over and closing his eyes, thinking of how he would have so much to do the next day - talk to the doctor about coming to the dueling ground, see what Caleb and Davies' second had come to (though he doubted they would be able to resolve the situation), write his father, write Grace a final letter (no matter how much she tried to stop him or how angry her pleading made him), talk to the chaplain… there would be a lot to do before the duel, in addition to his regular duties and drills.

The next afternoon, Grace went to find Caleb, knowing that Ben was out with his regiment, drilling them in the field. After hunting through the camp, she found him working in Ben's tent. "Hey there, Gracie."

"Caleb, you have to stop him." She wasted no time sitting down next to him, telling him everything. "Ben's going to get himself killed if you don't, and all over something ridiculous. I know his command won't suffer if he doesn't duel, but he's so wound up in all of this that he thinks his life will fall apart if he doesn't resolve this. There has to be something you can do."

Caleb shook his head sadly, recounting how he had spent his morning. "I already talked with Davies' second, a man named Corporal Deerwester. Now let's see if I can get this right - he says that Davies says that he refuses to apologize for what he said, because the rest of camp all says that it's true, and that he was the only one brave enough to say it in Tallboy's face. I know we both tried, but they're meeting on the dueling ground outside of camp tomorrow. Neither one of them will back down."

"There has to be something you can do," Grace begged. "It's a rash decision, and he's not looking beyond the insult to me and to his character. Please, you have to talk to him and make him see that he shouldn't be dueling. He's an officer, and he knows what Washington thinks about dueling. Caleb, please. You have to save your best friend."

"I have to stand there and help my best friend tomorrow," Caleb told her, looking to the door of the tent to be sure that Ben hadn't returned. "Gracie, believe me, I've tried. We ain't gonna convince him of anything. Tallboy's got a mind of his own, and he's resolved to do this."

Grace and Ben were uncharacteristically quiet at supper, Lafayette reading something between them. He and Hamilton had joined them for dinner, since Washington was in a meeting, but they said nothing on the subject and just continued talking about the promise of French aid. As soon as they were upstairs, Ben turned to her and apologized, but it was not the apology that she had been looking for. "Grace, I'm sorry that I have to do this. I'm sorry that I might wound a man tomorrow."

"You still have time to call it off."

"You know I can't do that," he reasoned. "It's far too late."

"You've been practicing, haven't you? You smell like gunpowder."

"I have," Ben confirmed, "and I have been getting much better."

Grace pursed her lips, not quite knowing what to say. There was nothing she could say that would convince him to go back on his word now, but still, she hoped that there would be something, some way she could keep him from getting hurt. So they went to bed, Grace holding onto him because even though she still had reservations about the duel, she knew that this could very well be the last time they were together.

It felt like she woke up only a moment later, especially since it was before sunrise when Ben got out of bed, giving her a kiss before going to get ready. He dressed in his full military uniform, taking a look at himself in the small mirror on their dressing table before coming back, giving her a last kiss and setting a letter on the bedside table for her to find. "I love you, Grace. I promise I'll come back."

"Love you," she mumbled, pretending to be half asleep. As soon as he had left and she heard his footsteps descending the stairs, though, she jumped out of bed, getting ready as fast as she could. She knew where the dueling ground was, and she, Mary, and Anna had resolved to go and try their hardest to convince the men to stop.

The three women met outside of the house, walking together towards the dueling grounds. They waved to the man on guard duty, telling him they they had business outside of the camp. He shrugged it off, letting them pass. The sun was getting close to rising now, Grace telling them to hurry as they turned into the woods. She guided them towards the dueling ground, only slowing when she heard the men talking. "Major Tallmadge has the first shot," she heard, Grace looking at the others.

"We have to do something."

Mary grabbed her arm, confessing, "When Abe and Simcoe dueled, they refused to stop until shots had been fired. They are honorable men… they should aim to miss."

"He made this decision in anger, and I'm sure he will -" Grace was cut off by a gunshot, turning to see that Ben had hit a tree, just above Lieutenant Davies' shoulder.

Anna took Grace's hand, Mary grabbing the other one as she concluded, "Now Lieutenant Davies has to fire… we cannot stop him, or the duel cannot finish, and neither one of them will be willing to walk off of that dueling ground."

"This is absurd," Grace said, shaking her head. She watched as Lieutenant Davies readied himself to take his shot. Normally, she would want to pray in a situation like this, but she was too focused on the scene, and could hardly think of the words to any of the prayers she had been taught as a child. "Ben, turn. There's no shame in giving him a smaller target. Oh, please, just turn…" She winced as Lieutenant Davies fired, but he missed wildly, hitting a tree about three feet to the left of where Ben was standing. As the men went to reload, Grace broke from the others, running over to the field and intercepting them. "Ben, you have to stop this. You've fired your shots, that's enough. Please, you have to -"

Ben looked sternly to his friend, who was making sure his pistol was loaded properly. "Caleb."

"No!" Caleb nodded silently, handing the pistol back and pulling Grace away from him despite her protests. "No, Ben, you can't… please, you can't fight to the -"

"Gracie, he's not stopping now," Caleb told her, holding her by the arms as Anna and Mary caught up with them. "I've tried talking to him, and you know it. He's not going to stop until one of them is bleeding."

"Ben, you're going to get yourself killed!"

"Caleb, shut her up," Ben called as he paced, the doctor he had brought out dutifully looking away so he could deny everything if anyone was injured.

Caleb held onto her tightly, whispering, "I'm gonna have to gag you if you aren't quiet, Gracie. I'd hate to have to do it, but I just might have to. Don't break his concentration now."

Lieutenant Davies' second cleared his throat, announcing that, "Major Tallmadge has the first shot."

Struggling against Caleb, Grace knew that there was no way he would let her go or say anything unless she moved quickly. Ben turned on his heel from the spot he had paced to, taking a deep breath and trying to judge how best to take his shot.

"Ben, if you shoot him, I will never be able to marry you!" That got his attention, Ben and Lieutenant Davies looking over to where Caleb was trying to plead with her to stop talking. "You heard me. I love you, Benjamin Tallmadge, but if you shoot that man, I know you value your honor, whatever remains of it after you draw blood, more than you value me. I will know you value your name more than everything you have achieved, and that you value your surname more than you value our names - Grace and Ben, the two young people from Setauket who grew up together and wanted to get married. I will know you value that surname more than you value the two of us, what we were and what we've grown to be. And I could never marry a man who cares about that more than he cares about his own wife and the life that he promised her."

The dueling ground was silent, Ben thinking over what he was about to do. So much flashed through his mind: The day they had met, when they were five or six years old and starting school. The day he realized that the girl who sat with Anna, two rows in front of him in class, was someone he wanted to get to know. The day they had first had a conversation without the rest of the group. The day they had first sat up late, talking about a revolution sweeping the colonies, and what it would mean for Setauket. The first time he had kissed her, how nervous he had been before and how he had felt like he was melting when he finally did it, and how he had realized he wanted to do that a lot more. The moment he had first realized he was in love with her. The moment he had decided to ask her to marry him, and how the moment she had said yes was worth all of the stress of talking to her father. The moment he had read the letter she had sent him, saying that she still wanted to be together even after years of separation. How he had thought of her when he had been injured, and how sometimes, in the thick of battle or when he had been badly injured, the idea of seeing her was the only thing that kept him from giving up. The plans they had made for the future, how he wanted to spend his life with her by his side. How she had held onto him all night, when he couldn't sleep, and how comforting her presence had been. How, even then, he longed to hold her.

He glanced at her, Grace begging for him to stop before it was too late. "Please, Ben, you can't. You mustn't."

Slowly, he lowered his pistol. He stepped forward, extending his hand to Lieutenant Davies. Grace couldn't hear what they said to each other, but they ultimately nodded, shook hands again, and moved towards their seconds. Caleb let her go, Grace running to meet Ben. She wrapped her arms around him, Ben kissing her cheek and whispering, "I'm sorry. I was angry, angry at all of the things I had heard being said about us for months, and Lieutenant Davies bore the brunt of it. The men will know I'm serious about it now, though. I will admit, Grace, that was the most frightened I've been in a long time."

"Come on, we're taking you home," she told him, grabbing his hand and starting to lead him back towards the others. "And I'm not letting you out of my sight."


	26. Champe's Mission

Washington would never find out about the duel that was fought right outside of his camp, but all of the men knew that Major Tallmadge was serious when he warned them not to insult Grace to her face or behind her back. Word-of-mouth spread quickly across the camp about the duel, and people would whisper about it for weeks. From then on, the men had little to say about Grace, even when they were among the camp followers. Ben himself did not say a word about the duel until much later, but Grace was alright with that, as long as he didn't try to duel again. There was already a whole lot of change going on in camp keeping them occupied, though.

Selah Strong had come to visit the Continental encampment on behalf of Congress, taking stock of things and working on a report to take back, which would help to determine the budget for the next year. Hopefully he would be able to get the soldiers at least some of the money they were owed, and better rations. Anna chose to remain there, but told Grace that she had considered going with him and getting out of "this bloody business" as she called it. But in the end, she had stayed, since she was a useful spy among the women of the camp.

Mary had been proving her worth as well, coming to tell Grace that, "There's a woman here, Ann Bates is her real name, who has a husband in the British Army. I think she's feeding him information. Please, don't tell Ben yet, not until I know more. I know I can find out more about what she knows, just give me time."

They were hidden out in the barn, where so many secret meetings had happened. Grace agreed, promising her that she wouldn't say a word to Ben until Mary was sure that she had enough information. "This helps me too, I must admit," Grace said, checking to be sure that the footsteps they had heard were just men on a routine patrol. "I swear all I do around here is laundry or help in the medical tent, and talk with Ben. This helps me feel like I'm doing something for the cause… you and Anna are among the camp followers. You overhear things and pick things up like this, and you're doing things. Whenever I go into the camp, people suddenly clam up. Sure, I can copy codebooks and write letters to plant on people, but this makes me feel like I'm back in Setauket, helping the ring again."

"You've always been a help to the ring," Mary assured her, pacing towards the front of the barn while Grace leaned on one of the posts holding up the hayloft. "We each have our role. Anna was the signal, you were the informant, and I cleaned up after Abe, who constantly got himself in trouble. Together, the three of us kept things from boiling over, since none of these men know how to. We've kept them together, and kept them from getting themselves killed, more times than they will ever know. You yourself have saved so many men in this army, uncovering everything that you did."

"And I'd like to keep doing it," Grace resolved, Mary peeking out of the barn door. She was still new to the whole spying thing, and was every bit as cautious as Abe had been. At first. "This whole Ann Bates business will help to ensure that I don't lose my position, and, as much as I hate to say it, all of the rumors in camp about Ben, Anna, and I will help to keep my work under wraps."

Mary nodded, telling her that, "Everyone is convinced that Ben and Anna are seeing each other, and right under your nose at that. I would suggest that we keep it that way."

"I would fully agree. Let them talk, since it keeps them distracted."

When Grace returned home that night, Ben was still gone. She had gotten used to this long ago - he would be out on patrol, drilling his troops, or in a meeting that had lasted long into the night. Or he would be on a mission, but he would always leave a note if he didn't have time to find her and let her know himself. So she figured that he was out somewhere in the camp, attending to whatever a major and the head of intelligence had to attend to at that hour. The clock in the hall had struck midnight when she went to bed with Ben still gone.

Around one in the morning, Grace woke up to hear the door creaking open, Ben's familiar footsteps coming in before closing the door again. She listened in her half-awake state, drifting in and out of sleep as he got ready for bed, finally joining her and blowing out the candle that he had been carrying. He got into bed quietly, Grace rolling over to look at him. "I guess I woke you," he whispered, Grace smiling a bit. "I'm sorry that I was so late."

"It's alright," she said, blinking slowly.

"I've been up talking to a man we're going to place in Arnold's American Legion. I'm sending him out tomorrow night," Ben told her. "I'll need your help tomorrow. I'll explain everything in the morning." Grace nodded as he put his arms around her, the two of them drifting off to sleep thinking of spies and plots and secret codes.

Ben woke her up in the morning, saying that he would need her to report to his tent after she had checked in with the doctor and told him that she was needed elsewhere. Dr. Wippold knew that Ben would request her help sometimes, but he was told the same stories that the other soldiers were - that she would act as his secretary when he was extremely busy, since she could write volumes of letters rapidly. When she reached his tent, Grace found Ben talking to a man who she assumed to be their future defector.

"John Champe, ma'am," he introduced himself, kissing her hand. "It is my honor."

"Thank you," Grace said, taking a set at the desk where she would station herself when Ben needed her. "The honor is all mine."

"Sergeant Champe is to be our plant in Arnold's American Legion," Ben informed her, setting a stack of paper and an inkwell in front of her. "Anna has already drafted much of what I need, but there are still a few papers left to go - letters with information he can give to the British and pass off as intelligence. Sergeant Champe will be working with Abe to hopefully trap Arnold for us."

Grace began writing as Ben continued his briefing, telling Champe everything he would need to know about what they were doing and how it would be executed, as well as what Abe had already reported. Making mental notes as she wrote, Grace decided that she had to meet with Mary sooner rather than later to tell her about how Abe was doing. Ben had refused to tell her much of anything, since she had no right to know about their spying activities, but Grace had been feeding her everything she knew. After all, if she was in Mary's position and Ben were out in enemy territory, she would be demanding to know about his welfare too.

"You will run the risk of getting shot by our men, but I will ensure that they are ordered not to fire when you get close to the line. I will order my best shot to miss - he is one of us, and will not kill you in your attempt to evade us," Ben was telling him, Grace still writing a draft of a letter. She was trying to embed a fairly easy cipher in it, with details about men and cannons and things like that, but making them up as she went. When she had finished the page, she read it over before passing it over to Ben. He read everything, giving his approval and telling her to write up a final letter.

Champe would be defecting after dark, while he was supposed to be on guard duty, patrolling the perimeter of the camp on horseback. Ben and Caleb would be ready for him to run, delaying their response as they gathered a group of men to take with them. For her part, Grace would be sitting in the house, or at least that's what Ben thought. She planned on going to see Mary, updating her on what they were doing with Champe and his mission, and telling her about the latest update on Abe.

When dinner had been cleared away and it had grown dark out, Ben checked the clock, kissing Grace goodbye and promising that he would be back by midnight. She followed him to the door, watching as he left after wishing him good luck. It was one of the rare days where the rest of the house was out, so they were the only two at the dinner table. Lafayette and Washington had to leave dinner early, being called away by a letter from the Comte de Rochambeau that needed to be answered immediately, and Hamilton had not come home all day, instead holed up in his tent. Once the door had closed, all of the pieces began to fall into place.

Grace went upstairs, looking out of the window and watching as Ben's lantern disappeared, heading for his tent. She had fifteen minutes until she had to leave in order to meet Mary in the barn, but she decided to get ready early and head her off. While she was grabbing her cloak, however, the front door of the house opened. "Bon soir, Gracie."

"Bon soir, monsieur general," she smiled, turning to see Lafayette just arriving home. "How was your meeting with General Washington?"

"To be completely frank, I do wish the general would learn French, so I or Colonel Hamilton do not have to be the ones to translate," he smiled as he hung his coat in the front hall. "I do not wish to delay you, but a cup of tea later in the evening would be nice. We have not spoken - not of matters that do not concern the military - in a considerable time."

"Of course, but first, you should have something to eat. The cooks really outdid themselves tonight. I'm fairly certain everything is still warm."

Grace left Lafayette to find himself something for supper, grabbing a lantern and heading for the barn. She was still early, waiting for Mary in the darkness. Mary arrived a couple of minutes later, immediately asking about Abe and complaining that Ben had been, "insistent on my finding out more about Ann Bates, but I do not wish to ask too much too soon."

"Abe is doing well. We're sending a man to help him, and we should have word within a few days," Grace promised, setting her lantern down carefully. "Last I heard, he's doing well, and is entirely enmeshed in the British Army. They trust him. We've got a man going to back him up, and once they grab Arnold, they'll be back here for good. And I'll talk to Ben. He can do that sometimes, forget what it means to be… well, to have someone you love behind enemy lines. When it was me, he at least knew that they would be merciful if I was caught. I know you hardly have the same luxury when it comes to Abe."

"Thank you. I know it is because you and Anna Strong grew up with him, and because you two have been in the ring much longer than I have, but he seems to afford you more privileges than he gives me."

"I know, and I am sorry," Grace pressed, taking her friend's hand. "I truly am sorry. I must admit, in confidence, that Ben is not the same man that I became engaged to back in Setauket, and he is hardly the same man I became engaged to again recently. The war has hardened him, and has made him blind to a lot of things. I will try to talk with him, to see if he can think about the way he's been treating you, about the way he's been treating everyone and using them for information rather than… rather than treating them like the people that they really are. He can… he can see people as pawns in this war sometimes, and can hardly think past that. I'm sorry, I have said too much."

"It's alright," Mary assured her, smiling somewhat ruefully. "We all have our thoughts, our exasperations, that must be shared with someone, especially when the object of those thoughts becomes so blinded by their mission that they can hardly see outside of it, or what it does to others. Abe was like that too, back in Setauket."

With a sigh, Grace went to the door, checking to see that they hadn't been followed. She was always careful, and after the missteps that some of the members of the ring had, she had her justification. "If I am confessing things, I wish this could all be over. Every day it seems like we are getting more and more embroiled in this, climbing deeper into a hole that one day we'll never be able to get out of. All of these lies and secret missions had better pay off, or else… if they are miraculously not hanged, our husbands will be changed forever."

"They already have changed," Mary sighed. "But I can at least be glad that I have a couple of friends in this camp, especially one as candid as you."

"And with less history," Grace added, thinking of how, even now, Mary would much rather work with her than Anna. No matter what, she would hold Anna and Abe's relationship against her, even though Anna had ended long ago.

When Grace got back to the house, she sat and talked with Lafayette for a while, telling him about life in Setauket and listening to stories about Versailles. The two of them had struck up an odd sort of friendship ever since they had been quartered in the same house. When the others had been out, she and Lafayette, who had less to do since his duties had more to do with diplomacy and the occasional battle than being in the field all of the time, would sit up and talk about their lives, about books they had read, about whatever they felt like. Their conversations would be in rapid-fire French, Lafayette reveling in the fact that she could speak his native language well enough to hold a real conversation. She had gotten better over the months that they had been there, even though Lafayette would sometimes have to stop and define a word or two. On the rare occasions that he had some spare time, Hamilton would join them, since he also spoke French well. They would sit up and talk for hours, Ben coming in to find them clearly enjoying their discussions even though he had little idea what they were saying.

That was what happened that night, Ben walking in and hearing their conversation in the parlor. He leaned on the door frame, listening to the two of them talking for a while before heading upstairs to wash the dirt and sweat of battle off. When Grace finally came upstairs, he was sitting in bed, looking at a map of Virginia. He set it aside when she came in, telling her that, "It worked. Champe is on his way. If we're lucky, we'll have Arnold by the end of the month."


	27. Shipping Out

Even for all of the hardships that they faced, Grace was glad that she had a house to live in and people who she could call genuine friends. She had spent the day in the medical tent, trying her best to save a soldier who had come down with a terrible cough that developed into pneumonia. He had held on for days, but that afternoon, he had finally passed away, telling her to write to his family. As the doctor and an assistant were wrapping up the body, Grace sat down and drafted a letter, writing to his wife about how brave the man had been in life and death, how he had saved so many people, and how he had bravely served his country. She had to write letters like that almost every day, and it began to weigh on her. Every few days, she would send off bundles of letters, telling families that their sons, husbands, and brothers were sick or had passed away. There were rare occasions that she had to send letters saying that family members thought to have died in battle were making a good recovery, but they were few and far between.

By the time the sun was setting and supper was ready, Grace was exhausted, going to wash up and get ready for dinner. It was always a surprise who would be there - sometimes only one other person, sometimes an entire dinner table and guests, or sometimes just her, going to eat and read a book until the others came home. That night, Grace and Lafayette had dinner together, discussing the army's movements. British General Cornwallis had been looking into a southern attack, and Lafayette, along with the rest of Washington's close staff, were trying to convince him to move some soldiers south.

Taking a walk after they ate, they rounded the edge of the camp, just observing people going about their nightly routines. Soldiers sat around campfires, groups huddled together as they ate and talked, finally able to joke with each other after a day of drills and duties. Others were getting ready to stand guard, pulling coats on as they left their tents, grabbing their guns, or squirrelling away a bit of food to snack on later, while they were at their posts. Intuitively, Grace and Lafayette knew that rumors would be flying about them too - any time one of the officers was regularly seen talking to a woman, rumors would circulate about them. They shrugged it off, though, since every time Grace was out in public with Lafayette, Hamilton, or even General Washington, the men would comment. The whispers about her and Ben had just recently died down after the duel, but she kept hearing them about the other officers.

It helped if they talked in French, since many of the men did not speak the language, and they had no idea what they were discussing. "I would like to propose moving my men down to Virginia, but we must first wait to see General Washington's strategy," Lafayette told her as they rounded a couple of rows of tents.

"General Washington does not seem to see the value of moving men south. He is still bent on taking New York," Grace sighed, watching a group of men roasting what looked like a goose. "Ben tells me that he is obsessed with the idea. He thinks we cannot win the war without it."

Lafayette nodded. "If we strike them in Virginia, it will show that American forces are everywhere, and that we are not giving up. Winning one strong battle there will greatly weaken their morale, and will give our soldiers a much-needed victory."

Grace agreed wholeheartedly. Washington was convinced that they needed to retake New York City in order to win the war, despite all evidence to the contrary, and despite the other generals telling him that they needed to move south. "I think it would be wise to -"

A messenger had run up to her, handing her a note. The boy was one she had seen a lot, carrying messages. He lived with his mother in the camp followers' area, since he was too young to join the army and looked too young to lie about his age. So he became a keen messenger and drummer, carrying letters and dispatches around the camp. He hadn't learned to read, so the officers trusted him with their correspondence. "I'm sorry to interrupt, ma'am, but Major Tallmadge sent this for you. I checked at the house, but no one was there," he panted.

"Thank you, Daniel," she smiled, accepting the note. She read it over as the boy ran off. "I'm sorry, but I must be off," she told Lafayette. "Ben needs me. I promise we will talk later, though. It is part of the ring." He knew about their spy ring in New York, and about how she was involved, but he knew little else about who was a part of it or how they did their work.

Ben, Grace, Mary, and Anna were soon holed up in the barn, discussing the ring and what they had found out recently, since there had been a lot of new developments in the camp. Mary had the most interesting news, that a woman in the camp followers' area, the one that she had found out had a British husband, was counting men and cannons and planning on sending information to her husband soon. There was most certainly a spy in the camp, and she was looking for Mary's help.

Ben was insistent that she find out what Ann Bates knew, who she was reporting to, and who else was working with her in the camp and among the camp followers, but Mary needed time. She needed to get information out of Ann Bates bit by bit, or risk exposing what she was really doing. "Please, just give me a few more days. If we scare her off now, we will risk losing everything. She could decide to run -"

"Mary, this could mean people's lives," Ben stressed. "You have to hurry."

"I've been trying, but if I warn her - she knew I was hiding something the moment I set foot in camp. If she picks up on it -"

"Just hurry."

Anna, Mary, and Grace exchanged a look, all of them being able to read each other's faces as Ben headed for the door. Grace followed him, taking the lantern that he forgotten in one hand and grabbing his hand with the other. "Ben, you… you shouldn't yell at her like that. You've been rather abrupt with them, especially Mary. We're people too. We're your friends, your family… you've become so wound up in this war that you're forgetting to treat people like people sometimes. Especially Mary and Caleb. Mary's concerned about her husband, just like I would be if it were you. I would be demanding to know the same things -"

"She has no right to know, and you would have no right to know if it were me. We're fighting for a higher cause, and to win, we have to forsake some things," he said gruffly, leading her towards the house.

"Then lie to her," Grace bluntly answered as they made their way past the last row of tents and started up the path towards their current quarters. "Lie to her and make her feel better. We already lie to so many people about what we do, about how these missions are carried out, about what we know. Lie to her and make her feel better. If she wasn't so worried about Abe, then she would be able to concentrate on getting us information." She sighed, admitting that, "I know we shouldn't be lying to our friends to make them… more useful, but it would put her mind at ease, and she trusts you. I hate to tell you to exploit that trust, but you just might have to."

They walked in quietly, Ben taking his time closing the front door. Their conversation had to stop as they made their way through the darkened house and up the stairs, but as soon as they had reached their room, he told her that, "Frankly, Mary isn't the one I'm worried about. She will get us information, even if she needs some prodding. It's Caleb that I'm concerned with now."

"He hasn't seemed right ever since we got him back from Simcoe," Grace agreed, sitting down to untie her boots. "He's been distant every time I've seen him. It's not often, but I try to stop by his tent when I'm headed to the medical tents, or pass by when I have to go down to Anna's cart and get things for the doctor. I think Simcoe's gotten into his head."

Ben sighed, looking over to where Grace was slowly unpinning her hair. He had watched her go through her nightly routine dozens of times, but he would still be struck by how she made everything seem normal, how she could quiet thoughts of the war for a little while. Now he was thinking of Caleb, not fo the soldier he had turned his best friend into, but the best friend he had had in Setauket, the best friend who got their group into trouble but made them laugh hundreds of times over. The same best friend who had dared him to ask Grace to go on a walk with him, the same best friend who had given him the courage to ask her to a party. The war had changed him, and he had changed Caleb. He had been the one to bring all of this on his best friend, and he had to do something to stop it.

"Ben?"

"Sorry," he shook his head, running a hand through his hair. "I was just thinking… Caleb used to be so different, before the war. He's still the same old Brewster, but the war changed him, like it's changed us. But Grace, this whole thing with Simcoe… he's been drinking more, and shirking his responsibilities. He's been drunk off his arse half of the times I've seen him."

"You should talk to him," she suggested, asking him to help her unbutton her dress. "This corset is killing me, I'm sorry. But you should talk to him, not as his commander, but as the two of you, the boys from Setauket who would grab Abe and come to annoy Anna and I until we went out to party or picnic or whatever with you. Simcoe got to him, whether he gave our names or not. Simcoe got into his head, and it's bothering him. He needs his best friend."

"I will," Ben vowed, thinking of how badly Caleb needed an intervention. "I'll talk to him tomorrow, before he goes off to visit Abe. I'm having him row over and pick up Arnold."

In reality, it would be Ben and another soldier who went to pick up Arnold, since Caleb was too drunk the next day to be trusted to row across the river. But then again, the entire plot had to be scrapped, so it made little difference, at least in regards to military strategy. When they were approaching the other side of the river, Ben spotted a couple of ships being loaded in the darkness - enough to make him think that the British were moving their troops. They were heading for the south, he was sure. The ships full of men would be moving to join Lord Cornwallis in Virginia. This meant that surely something was going to happen in the south, and Washington, now more than ever, needed to move his men that way.

As they rowed back towards the Continental camp, Ben couldn't help but to feel that they were running out of time. The climactic battle that Washington wanted to gear up for in New York was sure to be moving to the south, where Cornwallis was ramping up his defenses and preparing to strike when the moment was right. If he couldn't convince Washington to move men and arms south, they would almost certainly lose the battle that Cornwallis was preparing for, which would be a devastating - and perhaps fatal - blow to the revolution.


	28. Too Many Goodbyes

The next day, Grace woke to hear a lot of loud voices in the drawing room. This wasn't too out of the ordinary - Washington often consulted with men who lost their tempers much more quickly than he did, and they would yell about their commands, about how they needed resources, or about military decisions that had nothing to do with them and everything to do with Congress. As she headed downstairs, the voices quieted, a man storming out of the drawing room and out of the front door, slamming it behind him. The hum of the discussion resumed at its usual volume as she went to find something for breakfast, and the first of the men were just leaving their meeting as water boiled for coffee. A few lingered to talk with Washington, but the majority of them either left the house, or, in Hamilton's case, returned to their studies to continue their work.

Lafayette was on his way out, but saw that Grace was in the parlor by the fire, making coffee to go with breakfast, so he stopped to tell her good morning. Or so she thought. "Bonjour, cherie. May I have some?"

"Of course," she smiled, pouring the marquis a cup of coffee and taking a seat beside him. "That was an awfully noisy meeting that you all had."

"Yes, one of the general's newest Lieutenants was not happy with his plans for the south. He has decided to remain here, at least in part," Lafayette told her. "He is sending me to Virginia with my men. Not many will be leaving, but _l'Hermione_ will be full. We are heading off Lord Cornwallis' troops by sea."

"You're leaving?" Grace asked, her face dropping.

"Oui. We sail at noon."

"Today? Well, it must eb today, since we are in need of decisive moves… I hate to see you go."

Lafayette nodded, telling her that, "I am sorry that I have to leave you. I will miss our conversations, all of our talks late into the night and walks around camp. It is nice having someone here who speaks my language, and who is party to this war as, well, a sort of outsider."

"I'll miss you too," Grace said, taking his hand. "But we will be together again, I'm sure of it. Ben will convince Washington that we must follow you down to Virginia. He will make him see reason, hopefully sooner rather than later."

"In the interest of, well, telling you, in case we do not see each other again due to this battle, there is something I must say," Lafayette admitted, setting his cup of coffee down. "When I first met you, that night at the ball, I was quite taken with you. I do have a wife, Adrienne, whom I love. However, I was still taken with you. And then I saw the way that Major Tallmadge - Captain Tallmadge, at the time - the way he looked at you. The love in his eyes, there is nothing comparable to that. I am glad that we have been able to become such good friends, and I am glad that you have found your love time and time again. Do not lose him. There are very few people who find someone who looks at them like he looked at you during that ball, and continues to do so after all of this time." He stood, bidding her goodbye, "for now, at least. As you say, we will see each other again. I will write, in lieu of our normal conversations. Letters will have to suffice. What was your alias again?"

"Mary. Mary Floyd," she told him, following him to the door. "Good luck, and godspeed."

Lafayette gave her a hug, kissed her on both cheeks, and bowed formally, which made her smile. " _Au revoir, Madame Tallmadge._ Until we meet again."

"Until we meet again," she nodded, Lafayette heading out of the door. She went to the window, watching him head away from the house until she could see him no more. A little while later, one of his men would come to pick up his things as they readied _l'Hermione_ , and they would sail south, heading off Cornwallis' men.

As Grace picked up their coffee cups, the front door of the house flew open, Caleb rushing in and heading to the drawing room to talk to Washington. She could only hear part of what he said, but it sounded like he was resigning his position. She took up a position on the stairs in order to listen better, ostensibly waiting for Ben, but in reality trying to listen in on their conversation. From what she picked up, he planned on leaving and heading south, looking for someone. Abe. He was trying to rescue Abe, since he had been forced to go south with the American Legion.

When Caleb finally emerged from the drawing room, he took one look at her and pulled her into a bear hug. "Gracie, I'm going to get Abe back!"

"You're going to Virginia?"

"That I am. We'll have him back in no time."

"I've been saying too many goodbyes to too many good people today," she sighed, giving him another hug and wishing him luck. "You go bring him back. I'll try to get Ben to make sure we meet you there."

For the second time in one morning, she had to watch one of her close friends leave her, heading into battle and further into danger. She had faith in Caleb, but the growing British force in the south worried her, and she was sure that she wasn't alone in thinking that they needed to move there quickly or be forced to give up on the south entirely.

Grace spent the day in the medical tent, tending to wounds and bringing food and water to the dying. The entire time, her thoughts were elsewhere. She would think of her dear friend Lafayette, sailing towards Virginia, hopefully timing it right to meet up with the Comte de Rochambeau's fleet. And she would think of Caleb, who she had watched grow up by her side, heading into enemy territory alone, looking for Abe. that was one of the days that she wished they were back in Setauket together, all of them living normal lives and not having to face the near-constant danger of being killed or caught.

"Mrs. Tallmadge!"

"Sorry, Dr. Wippold," she looked over to where the doctor was calling her. "I'm sorry."

The doctor frowned, telling her to come to the soldier he was working on. "Are you alright?"

"Two of my closest friends just left," she swallowed the lump in her throat as she came over to where he was standing, asking her to press down on an incision he had made while he readied a needle and thread for stitches. "They were sent… on missions for General Washington, and they are headed right into the belly of the beast."

"If they are anything near as capable as you are, they will be fine," Dr. Wippold assured her. "Now I need you to hold here, and move along the line as I stitch him up. Captain Beckett, the worst is over. Just breathe, and concentrate on the beautiful Mrs. Tallmadge instead of the pain."

Grace tried to smile, maintaining eye contact with the man as Dr. Wippold sewed him up. "Captain Beckett, what's your first name?"

"Nathaniel," he winced, gritting his teeth as Dr. Wippold worked.

"Nathaniel," Grace beamed, trying to keep him distracted and not thinking about the pain. Dr. Wippold worked quickly, but she knew the young man would be in pain no matter how fast the doctor worked. Stitches were painful, and that was that. "Where are you from, Nathaniel?"

He closed his eyes for a moment as Dr. Wippold began another line of stitches, crisscrossing the wound that Grace was holding shut. "Connecticut. 2nd Continental Light Dragoons."

"My husband's command," Grace told him. "He and I are from a little town in New York. We grew up together, and never thought we would be dragged into a war like this. And yet, here we are."

Nathaniel opened his eyes again, telling her that, "He speaks very highly of you, ma'am. Many people do. Many say terrible things as well, but I understand why you want to wait to get married until after the war. Starting a family in a free United States of America, well, we can dream."

"Do you have a family?"

"My parents are old, and are living with my eldest brother. I was the youngest, by far. I just turned 19 last month. I would like to start a family one day, in a free country, where I can raise them to be good people. I already have a girl in mind," he admitted. "Her name is Alice, and she lived down the street from my father's shop while I was growing up. She comes from a Patriot family, and she was there to see me off when I joined up. I can only hope that her family will still be there when I return after the war."

"All done," Dr. Wippold announced, telling him to sit up. "Keep weight off of that arm for a while, and you should be fine. You'll get home with a nice scar to impress that young lady with."

That night, Grace was sitting in the parlor, sewing a new button onto one of her dresses. She had eaten supper with Hamilton and Washington, since Ben was busy drilling his troops. They had been discussing moving their men south, something which Grace had vehemently advocated, bluntly telling Washington that he should give up on New York and attack where they knew the British were weaker. If they could defeat Lord Cornwallis, they could show that they would not be defeated, that they would continue to strike no matter what they were faced with.

She already missed Lafayette, who usually sat up talking to her while she did her work or had a cup of coffee. More days than not, they would sit and talk, complaining about the people in the camp or the lack of funds, problems with Congress or the French government, and the frustrations of not having much influence in the decisions that Washington was making. Or they would tell stories from Setauket and Versailles, laughing about how different the two were, but how they had many of the same types of people in both places. She missed how honest they could be with each other, the strange sort of closeness that only a war could forge and only close friends could keep up.

And she missed Caleb, the constant jokes that he would tell, and how he always kept them on their toes. She had faith in him, but still worried, especially after Simcoe. Maybe he would finally kill the man, once and for all. He certainly deserved to be the one to do it. Her thoughts were interrupted by Mary, who appeared in the doorway. "I know I'm not supposed to be here -"

"Nonsense," Grace declared. "Come on over and sit down. It's too quiet here - people are leaving, and it makes the house seem bigger."

Mary sat, but told her that, "I can't stay for long. Anna's watching Thomas. I was trying to find Ben, but you can tell him just as well. Ann Bates is most certainly working alone, but her husband reports directly to Clinton himself."

"So anything she sends him goes directly to Clinton," Grace nodded, setting her sewing aside. "That means we can feed her false information and get Clinton to move his men… or we can let him think that Washington is going to go on with his plan of attacking York City, make him request more men, and then strike in the south when Cornwallis is at his weakest. I'll tell Ben as soon as he gets home. Mary, you're brilliant." She got up and gave her a hug, walking with her friend to the door.

"I'm sorry I can't stay longer, but I shouldn't even be in the camp. You know how Ben gets about things like that."

"I know," Grace sighed, shaking her head. "Be careful on your way back, and try not to be seen by too many people. But thank you. I'll make sure Ben knows as soon as he's back."

Leaning on the door frame as she watched Mary go, Grace thought of how, for the first time in a very long time, they had a chance. There was an actual chance that they could hit Cornwallis when he was weak, and they could cut the British troops in half. A decisive victory could bring them closer than ever to the end of the war.


	29. Moving South

"Grace, I have good news," Ben announced, bursting into the medical tent where she was working. Grace looked up from where she was busy stabilizing a man's broken arm as he continued, "You and Dr. Wippold will need to start packing your things. We're loading the ill and injured onto the first ships."

"Ben, what do you mean?" she could hardly look over to talk to him, since she was trying to keep a splint in place, but she did have a few seconds to think. "Are we following Lafayette?"

"Finish up here, talk to the doctor, and come and find me in my tent," he instructed, watching her work. "I cannot tell you here, but I have good news."

Grace finished wrapping the man's arm as Ben set off for his tent. When she was done, she went to find Dr. Wippold and one of his other assistants in a different tent, telling them what Ben had said and promising more details to come. The doctor assured her that he had things covered there and that she should go find her husband, since he clearly had important news. Thanking him profusely, Grace left, making her way through the camp towards the center of army intelligence.

When she reached the tent, she could hear voices inside. They were muffled, but if she stood in the shadow of the tent and listened carefully, she could hear them just fine. It sounded like Anna was there, talking to Ben about Ann Bates and the trouble in camp. "Mary will say she discovered this, and give it to her as proof that we are moving towards York City and planning an attack."

"Are you sure she'll believe it? You don't have much experience writing love letters," Anna's voice said, making Grace smirk.

Ben's answer was even better, and she had to keep herself from laughing as she listened. "I have Grace, now don't I? How do you think I convinced her to marry me when we spent months apart?"

"Oh, I think she was fairly convinced from the instant she saw you after a year and a half or so of you running off to the army. She could hardly talk about anything else when she got back from that ball. I don't think it has much to do with your writing skills."

"Well, whatever did it, I have her."

"That he does," Grace chuckled as she walked into the tent, Ben and Anna smiling. "What are you writing there?"

"This is exactly what I wanted to tell you about, but I could not say a word in front of the other men," Ben told her as she sat down next to Anna. "Washington's moving the army to Virginia. We will rendezvous with the French and cut Cornwallis off in his own territory. This letter will travel through Mary to Ann Bates, to her husband, and then directly to General Clinton, who will request more men because he will think an attack on York City is imminent. All the while, we will be moving south. Even our men will think we're sailing for the Hudson, when we are actually sailing to meet up with Lafayette and his men. He has the French naval forces behind him."

"I must be getting back to my cart, but I hope this works," Anna said, bidding them goodbye and heading out towards the camp followers' area. She had read Grace's expression, knowing that she should leave the two of them to talk.

"If we're sailing to meet Lafayette -"

Ben smiled, reaching out for her. "Don't worry," he promised, pulling her into his arms. Grace ended up sitting on his lap, her arms wound around his neck as she leaned her head on his. "I'll sneak you onto my ship. The followers… well, Washington thought he should make them walk or ride down there, but we have a ship we can fit them on. I'm making arrangements for them now. It will not be comfortable, but it will be possible. It's not a long journey, but I can lend you a coat and some breeches, and have you tuck your hair up into a hat, and I can march you onto the ship with the others."

"Really?" she laughed. "And what would Washington say about that?"

"As long as you're only out of your disguise when you're holed up in my quarters, he will never be any the wiser," Ben assured her. "For now, though, you should focus on packing your things - well, our things, since I will have to oversee moving the men onto ships starting as soon as Mary gets this letter to Ann Bates. She will set off immediately, since the news is so crucial. After that, we can begin moving the men, and then we will head south. Everything should be packed and the men onboard ships, ready to embark by the end of the week."

"Ben?"

"Hmm?" He looked up at her from his desk, kissing her cheek.

"Why do I have the feeling that this is going to be the… well, a decisive battle, if not the last one of the war?" Grace asked, looking him in the eye. "I just have a feeling that this one is going to be big. All of the major players will be there - if we bring Washington, Rochambeau, de Grasse, and Cornwallis together, all we're missing is Clinton... Cornwallis will not go down without a fight, and I know he will take no quarter. If we get cut off -"

"We will not be cut off," he said, pulling over a piece of paper. "Look at this. This is what Cornwallis is working with. We surround him by land and by sea, and he will have nowhere to go. He will be forced to surrender, just as long as the British believe we are heading for New York. Washington has already issued the order for decoy ships to be sent out towards York City."

Looking over the map, Grace had to admit that, "It's a brilliant plan. It will be dangerous - Cornwallis will not give up easily - but it's just possible that we could do this."

"Thank Culper. He was the one who stole this from Arnold."

"The more I think about it, this war is only going to be won because we outspied them. We gained the upper hand because of the ring, because of people just like us all over the colonies. Ambushes and non-traditional warfare, sure, but we only know much of what we know because of people whose names no one will ever know," Grace realized, Ben nodding along. "No one will ever know what we've done, but we just might be able to live in a country where we can be free to make our own decisions and not have the army marching through our towns and a king taxing us to death."

"No matter how we do it, winning the war is what matters," Ben stressed. "The British are already blocked in the Chesapeake bay by Admiral de Grasse. Lafayette and more men have just arrived, and we will be joining them soon. Washington believes if we can take a few of their redoubts, build a couple of parallels - entrenching our position, and defend them, we can take Cornwallis. Abe will know more about their arms and their conditions when we get there. I've gotten word this morning that Caleb was able to find him. They'll be waiting for us."

"That's wonderful." Grace stood, resolving that she would go and pack, since Dr. Wippold had everything handled in the medical tents.

Ben stopped her at the door of the tent, reminding her that, "This may be a long battle. We may even have to lay siege to them if they have enough armaments. But we will win. And remember, not a word of this to anyone."

"Not a word," she nodded, giving him a kiss before she left. There was a new buoyancy in her step as she moved through the camp towards the house. Some of the men were already getting their things together, many of them beginning by cleaning their guns. If they were not drilling, they sat cleaning their weapons, getting their last laundry orders in, and starting to pack for what they were told would be a trip to York City.

As Grace began taking clothes out of the chest in their room, she hummed ot herself, thinking that she would get to see Abe, Caleb, and Lafayette again soon, and that they would be finally on the move. And that she had been able to help them, gathering intelligence that would ultimately lead the British to think that they were actually headed for their stronghold in New York. It would be a decent trip down south, and then she would be relegated to the medical tents or the camp followers' area. She knew that Ben would tell her that being any closer would be dangerous, but then again, the entire was was dangerous. Shrugging the thought off, she resolved to do whatever she could to help the rebels win the war.

Grace wasn't the only one packing up her things that night. The women and children had been told that they would be shipping out, but Ann Bates would not be joining them. She had read the letter that Ben had given Mary, and had decided to ride for York City as soon as she finished stuffing her things into her bag. She would deliver the letter to General Clinton himself, convincing him that a large part of the Continental Army would be sailing for York City to mount a grand attack against his forces.

There was a knock on the door, Grace setting down the dress she had been folding and going to let Hamilton in. "Good evening, sir."

"Good evening, Mrs. Tallmadge. I see your husband has already told you we will be sailing soon."

"Yes, we will be ready to board the ship in the morning, if need be."

Hamilton nodded, letting her know that, "You and the major will be boarding tomorrow afternoon, and we will be sailing off in the evening, just in case there is anyone in camp looking to tell the British that we are heading far south. General Washington dispatched me to let you know."

"Thank you. Colonel Hamilton?"

"Yes, ma'am?"

"Do you think this could be it? The battle that definitively gives us the war?"

Hamilton nodded thoughtfully, telling her that, "I believe it very well could be. We have had some solid victories, and Admiral de Grasse is moving to block off their navy. We would very well trap and destroy General Cornwallis' army in Virginia."


	30. Arrival

Around noon the next day, Grace shed her last dress, packing it away and donning some of Ben's clothes. She laughed at herself in the mirror as she buttoned her waistcoat, pulling on a blue coat he had lent her and turning to see how she looked. Ben knocked on the door, coming in to see her pinning her hair in a pile on top of her head and tucking it under a hat. "How do I look?"

"Wonderful, Private Floyd," Ben laughed, sitting down at the end of the bed and watching her as she marvelled at her reflection in the mirror. "You look like you just signed up and were given a uniform that didn't fit, but you do look like a soldier."

"Thank you, but I wish I could just walk on in a dress. I can't wait to get on that boat and take all of this off. How do you march around dressed like this? I can walk just fine, but a sustained march would be terribly uncomfortable. Oh, how could you ride a horse dressed in all if this? I feel like I would split these trousers open trying to ride a horse - no, I would split these trousers just trying to get on the horse, let alone ride anywhere."

Ben lowered his voice conspiratorially, telling her that, "Not many people know this, but Lafayette has done that a few times. And not all of them in battle. He is not always the best with horses, but he can ride well enough."

Grace laughed, sitting down to pull on a pair of boots that were a few sizes too big. "Do I at least look like I could pass for a soldier?"

"Keep your head down, keep your voice low, and you'll pass well enough to get on the ship. Just follow me on, carrying our things, and I'll lead you to our quarters. I've already gotten you on the list of men who are expected on our ship. Are you ready?"

She nodded, giving the room one last glance before grabbing their bags, throwing one over her shoulder and carrying the other. "Yes sir, Major Tallmadge."

"Don't call me major, or I'll have to have you call me that all of the time."

"You like it?" Grace scoffed as they went downstairs and left the house. "Maybe I will call you 'major' more often."

"Hush now," Ben laughed, "we're out in public."

The two of them walked through the camp, which was rapidly becoming less and less populated, with soldiers being loaded onto the ships beginning early in the morning. Ben guided her through the crowd and towards the harbor, where they were stopped by a patrol, checking that only those listed for the ship were able to board.. "Major Tallmadge, three o'clock," the lead man nodded.

"Private Floyd here has my things. You'll find him on the list."

"Floyd… Floyd… First name, Private Floyd?"

"Matthew," Grace answered, keeping her voice as low as she could.

The man nodded again. "Private Matthew Floyd, Second Continental Light Dragoons, here you are. Welcome aboard, gentlemen. We sail at sundown." He stepped aside, turning to harass someone else who was trying to carry far too many things onto the ship at once. "You there, what are you doing?"

Ben and Grace made their way onto the ship without any further interruptions. Grace was able to catch a glimpse across the harbor for the brief moment that they were on deck. She would be confined to Ben's quarters for the rest of the trip, and would have to sneak out in the same uniform in order to disembark. "Well done," Ben said as he opened a door, Grace following him in.

She was finally able to breathe again while she took in their "quarters". All that they had been allotted was a tiny room with a bed, and a little bit of standing room to maneuver around the bed. The room was not meant to spend days on end in, but it would suffice for the five day journey to Virginia, where Lafayette and Admiral de Grasse were already beginning to take on the British Navy in the Chesapeake. Setting their things down and dropping onto the bed, Grace had to laugh. She took off her hat, tossing it over to Ben as she let her hair down. "That was exhilarating."

"Well, that will have to be your adventure for the week. You've got five days in here. I'll sneak you food, but you can't leave without that disguise."  
Grace would spend most of her time in the room, sewing by candlelight or the little light that the tiny window offered. Ben's clothes had all been patched and repaired by the second day. She would spend time napping or reading over the one book that Ben had managed to scrounge up, but she was still incredibly bored. Whenever Ben came back with food or to go to sleep at the end of the day, she would beg him for news about where they were, what was happening on deck, or what his soldiers were up to.

Finally, on the fourth day, she had gotten fed up with sitting there. So she did the only logical thing, donning the disguise that had gotten her onto the ship and pinning her hair up under a hat. She headed for the deck, spending some time watching the sea go by and breathing in the clean air. There were other men lounging on the deck, some of them playing cards, some of them sitting around and talking. She leaned against the railings, just happy to be out in the sun, listening to other people talk. The hum of their conversation was welcome, since she had lived in the silence of Ben's quarters for days. The only other voice she had heard for the last four days was his, and even then, they had to whisper in order to not be overheard.

Watching the waves hitting the sides of the ship and trying to see the coastline in the distance, Grace was content. There were other ship sailing with them, ships full of soldiers and armaments making their way towards the Virginia coast, where they would meet up with the French and, hopefully, overtake the British by land and by sea.

Grace made her way back below deck a while later, thinking that she would be fine staying there for another day, after which they would make their landing and march to meet the rest of the troops. She had done well hiding in plain sight during her time on deck, or so she thought. As she reached the door to Ben's room, a voice from the end of the hall stopped her. "Private Floyd," General Washington called, walking towards where she stood. "It is good to see you up and about. I must compliment you on your choice of uniform, although the epaulettes on that coat make me think you are a major."

Grace smiled, turning to face Washington, who had stopped outside of the door. "I'm sorry, sir. I hadn't noticed. I should be more careful with my disguises."

"Well, my Chief of Intelligence likely overlooked it because he had an entire troop to move onto this ship. Be cautious, Private Floyd. I would not want you falling into any trouble on this ship."

"I will be fine, sir," Grace assured him. "I have no plans to leave this room after my adventure out to the deck today."

"Good. Be on your way." Washington winked, heading for the stairs that would take him up onto the deck.

Grace didn't mention the exchange to Ben when he brought her dinner, finding her dressed normally. "From our best estimates, we will be landing tomorrow afternoon, a bit north of where our troops have begun building fortifications. We will march to join them in camp," Ben told her, sitting down on the bed as Grace began to eat. "Wear the uniform I gave you, and change out of it once we have reached the tents. Caleb and Abe will be meeting us as well. And Lafayette."

"I can't wait to see all of them," Grace said, continuing to eat. "I'm glad they're safe."

Ben thought for a moment, deciding that now would be the time to tell her. "For now they are. This is going to be a big battle, one of the largest we have seen yet. It may take us a while, and we will almost certainly need to lay siege to the British camps. Reports have it that they already have a system of redoubts and trenches, and they are well dug into their positions. If we have to lay siege to their fortifications, I may be gone for a while."

"I know. I'll be working and probably sleeping in the medical tents, or among the camp followers. But Ben, if the Continental Army is forced to lay siege to the British, we will have our own redoubts to defend, and many of them are like garrisons, aren't they?"

"Some are," he assented.

"Then I will be there with you and the army. They will need medical help there, and women to bring water, and -"

"I would warn you to stay away from the battle, but I know there is no way I can change your mind," he sighed, leaning back against the wall of their room. "But Grace, I want you to know that you mean so much to me, and that it would break my heart if anything happened to you. I will leave it up to you where you go, but I will continue to warn you against doing anything rash."

They reached Virginia the next day, Grace disembarking and quickly going to change in an outhouse in the harbor. She found Ben again, rejoining him for a moment before going to find Anna, Mary, and Thomas, who would be getting off of their ship soon. She would be marching further south with them, since Ben had his men to lead, and would be moving to join the rest of the Continental forces as soon as they could. Grace, for her part, would help Anna set up her cart and help Mary pitch her tent nearby when they reached camp. She planned on having dinner with them, staying in Anna's cart for the time being. Ben had already told her that he planned on putting up a tent with his men, but that they would most likely be spending most of their nights sleeping in the redoubts or wherever the army had moved to control during the day.

In reality, there would be a brief few days of peace before the real fighting began, Grace and Anna setting up the cart and helping Mary with her tent while they reunited with Abe and Caleb. Ben had pitched his tent near the camp followers' area, and Grace was able to stay with him for a few nights, although he hardly slept. Instead, he thought of how they would take and fortify more redoubts, and of how they would slowly take the British camp while Lafayette and de Grasse cut off any reinforcements in the bay. Then they would combine their forces to lay siege to the British entrenchments, starving them out and forcing them to use up all of their (very limited, as Abe reported) gunpowder stores.

Ben would lay awake at night, listening to the naval battles happening in the bay. He held Grace close, not knowing if it would be the last night that he saw her. As he watched her sleep, he pictured the network of seven redoubts and batteries that Cornwallis had built, surrounding the town, which had nearly been evacuated as the British took over. He thought of how this could very well be the final siege of the war, or could spell the end for the rebels if they lost. When he did sleep, he had awful dreams, some of which seemed like a warning.

 _He stood over a coffin, which had been lowered into the ground. Grace was standing next to him, holding his hand. She looked young, much younger than she was now. Caleb was on his other side, his hand on Ben's shoulder. Abe and Anna were standing with them, their heads bowed as his father talked, another man standing by his side. Samuel. He glanced up at the gravestone placed over the hole in the ground - Susannah Tallmadge, died 1768._

" _I'm so sorry," Grace was saying, giving him a hug before her father led her away. "I'm so sorry." Before his eyes, she grew older, her father disappearing as she came to hold his hand again. He was looking at another coffin, this one larger than his mother's, made of plain wood and sent back from the army. Samuel Tallmadge, died 1776._

 _This time, it felt different. This time, his jaw was set. He knew what he had to do. He would sign up for the Continental Army at the end of the week. But this time, too, things felt different in the town. There were more soldiers there, watching the funeral. And they had begun taking over, putting Setauket under military rule. Grace's father had passed away, but had been replaced by Judge Woodhull, who had offered her a job and went on to give her much unwanted advice about not seeing "that Tallmadge boy". But she was there anyway, holding his hand, kissing his cheek, crying as they lowered the coffin into the ground and buried it. Samuel had been like an older brother to her too._

 _The scene changed again, and this time, Ben was standing by the church, watching a burial happen. Grace was standing there, like she had been during the other funerals, but she held hands with Anna and Mary, tears streaming down her face. His father was reading from the old Bible that he kept next to his bed at night, the same Bible that he recorded births and deaths in. When he closed the book, he nodded to Abe and Caleb, who began shoveling dirt into the grave. They too looked like they had been crying, removing their hats as they picked up a pair of shovels._

 _Grace sank to her knees, Anna and Mary sitting down with her in the grass. Ben's father moved to put a hand on her shoulder, mumbling a few words. She finally stood a few moments later, hugging the reverend as she continued to cry. Anna and Mary stood up, brushing a few leaves off of their skirts and helping Grace fix hers. The reverend hugged her again, Grace pushing a few strands of hair back into place._

 _When Abe and Caleb were done, they went to hug Grace and shake the reverend's hand. Family by family, they said their goodbyes, finally leaving only Grace and his father to stand there, looking at the gravestone. Grace reached out, brushing her fingertips against the cold rock. Ben could take it no longer, making his way down the hill to see who they were mourning, even though he felt it already. He watched Grace continue crying as his father finally broke down, reading the gravestone over their shoulders - Benjamin Tallmadge, died 1781._


	31. Life Under Siege

Daily life under siege was something Grace had never thought she would experience, even when she was following the army. At least during the Battle of Setauket, they had only been at odds with the soldiers for a day, even though tension had been mounting for weeks. The rest of the battles she had been near had lasted for a couple of days at most, and even then, they were quick battles, often with breaks at night. Yorktown was completely different.

Anna and Mary were living in the camp followers' area, and Grace would join them every night, staying in the settlers' cart when Ben was leading attacks, which was fairly often. She split her days between the medical tents and the intelligence tent, where she would spend time mending clothes and writing dispatches for Washington, who had let Hamilton lead a group of men, instead of relegating him to desk duty. She liked being there, since that was where Ben would end up when he wasn't in battle. Half of the time he would just come in and fall asleep, saying hello and updating her a bit before drifting off.

During the day, there was fighting enough to be heard from the camp, but the fighting always ramped up at night. There were a couple of quieter days, with just a few skirmishes happening, but by the time they were a week into the fight, it seemed like it would never end.

Grace sat up in the intelligence tent, sewing by candlelight, mending coats and clothes that had been ripped open by gunshot wounds or cannonfire. She would collect a basket of them every day from the women who did all of the laundry, mending them in the evening and returning them to the medical tents, where their rightful owners would reclaim them, if they were still alive. She could hear the steady barrage of gunfire that the Continental Army was firing near the embankments, like she did every night. This time, it wasn't too loud - it must have been a relatively easy night, designed to get the British to waste their gunpowder while picking them off one by one.

She would sit up at night, hoping that Ben would come back. Every time she saw him, no matter how exhausted or covered in blood he was, she was thankful that he was alive. She had been designated the one who would go from the medical tents to the camp followers' area, letting wives and families know if their husbands, sons, or brothers had been injured, and if they should come and say their goodbyes. She hated being the one to have to deliver news like that, but someone had to.

A familiar voice startled her, Grace turning to see someone walking into the tent, wearing the distinguished coat of a general, as well as all of the decorations of a French commander and nobleman. "Bon soir, cherie," Lafayette smiled, Grace getting up to give her friend a hug. "I am glad I found you. I have been searching for a bit."

"I'm glad you made it onto dry land," she beamed, beckoning for him to sit down after she moved her basket full of clothing onto the ground, clearing off a chair for him. She picked up her work again - there really was no time to slow down - and told him that, "Ben's out with his men, but I'm sure he would like to see you as well. How goes the naval campaign?"

"I saw Monsieur Tallmadge about an hour ago," he told her. "He is doing well and sends his regards. We - the French fleet - have cut off any reinforcements sailing from England or the rest of the colonies. Admiral de Grasse controls the Chesapeake Bay now, and the British have given up many of their ships, choosing to sink some of them, rather than face the might of the French Navy. On land, we are doing well. Lord Cornwallis has fallen back tonight, leaving only a few redoubts in his outer defenses. He is fortifying the town now, while our men are slowing down for the evening, moving into the abandoned redoubts and garrisons. Tomorrow I am to lead an attack on the Fusiliers' redoubt as we build more earthworks and begin to secure a position to build a parallel."

Grace nodded, carefully stitching a sleeve back onto a shirt that she had fished out of the basket. She knew the man who it had once belonged to. He had lost an arm that morning and was sitting in the medical tent. Despite being in an inscrutable amount of pain, Dr. Wippold expected him to make a decent recovery. "Washington plans on inching towards the British until his army is close enough to take them, or so it seems."

"Precisely," Lafayette said, watching her work. "I do not know how long this siege will last, but General Washington's plan is a solid one. We will move closer and surround them on as many sides as we can, and then move in to capture whatever they have left standing at the end of the assault."

A rather loud round of gunfire went off, the two of them not bothering to look outside of the tent. They had grown used to it at all hours, used to the gunshots and the volleys of cannonfire coming from both sides, and they were used to being on edge, even in parts of the camp that they knew to be safe. "How was your trip here?" Grace asked, trying not to think about the battle that was going on outside. " _L'Hermione_ is a wonderful ship, or at least, she looks wonderful, and well-suited for a journey down the coast like that."

"Well, having a commander's quarters certainly makes the journey a much easier one than it was for most of the soldiers," Lafayette smiled, Grace laughing at the thought of her own journey south, which was nothing at all like his. "I also brought your friend Culper with me, since he had been captured by my men as a British spy, and, until verified by Lieutenant Brewster, I had to believe that he was loyal to the red coat that he was wearing."

"I wish I could have gone with you," Grace admitted, telling Lafayette about her journey south, first dressed as a man and then hiding out in a cramped room for nearly a week below deck. " _L'Hermione_ sounds like paradise compared to the days I spent in that tiny room."

"Had I known that almost the entire army would be moving south, I would have offered to bring you with me instead of allowing you to suffer on your ship for days," Lafayette sighed, shrugging and adding, "although I am sure Major Tallmadge would not want to lose you for that long, especially if a storm had welled up over the ocean."

Grace scoffed, saying, "Ben might not like it, but I'm sure he would have liked me to have a more comfortable journey even more. Perhaps when we sail north again, when we win this war once and for all, I will join you aboard _l'Hermione_ instead of returning on the ship that I took to get here. Hopefully a victory will not take too much longer."

The tent opened again, Ben coming in and dropping his sword on the table before sitting down on the cot that had been set up in the corner by one of Washington's aides. He ran a hand through his hair, greeting both of them. "Good evening, Monsieur General. Grace."

"I will let the two of you catch up. Goodnight, Major Tallmadge. Gracie, we will talk later, when we do not have this war to worry about. I have missed our conversations and the distraction that they provide form the hardships of war," Lafayette determined, standing and bidding them goodnight, kissing Grace on both cheeks before he left.

Grace stood, coming over to give Ben a kiss as Lafayette made his way towards his own tent. Ben was tired, but at least this time he wasn't covered in blood. There had been a few nights when he would come back so dirty and bloodied up that she had to ask if he was wounded or if he had just been in the thick of battle for hours. "How are you?"

"I wish I could sleep for a fortnight and wake up to a Continental victory," he joked, kicking his boots off and lying down on the cot. "I am done for the night, but I have to be there in the morning, to lead the building of the earthworks that will ultimately start moving towards the outer redoubts under British control. If we begin them fairly early, we can have enough of them built by the evening to begin digging a parallel under the cover of darkness."

"Have you eaten today?" Ben would forget to eat sometimes, when there was too much to do, and Grace had caught him a few times trying to go out to battle on an empty stomach. Soldiers fell all of the time form not eating, and she would always chastise him for it.

"Yes," he yawned, turning to be able to look at her. "I had supper with Washington. You can ask him, if you like."

She smiled a bit, shaking her head as he reached for a blanket. "I'll trust that. I have a few more of these to finish, but once I'm done, I'll be back over here with you." As she finished her work, she glanced up every few minutes to see him sleeping, at peace for a little while. He didn't have to think about the war, about the ment at were living and dying and struggling to gain ground just a little bit outside of their tent. For a few hours, he didn't have to worry about dodging bullets or bayonets. Instead, he could dream about the adventures he and his friends went on back in Setauket, or about the future, a future in a free land that he had helped to create. Grace liked watching him dream, at least if he was having good dreams. He would smile in his sleep or mumble a few words, making Grace smile back. At least he could be happy there.

When she was done with her work, Grace folded up the laundry, putting everything back into the basket that she had previously used to haul it all into the tent. Looking over to where Ben was sleeping peacefully, she sighed, getting up to join him after blowing out the candle that she had been using to work. Ben put his arm around her in his sleep as she laid down, turning to kiss his cheek before she closed her eyes. She liked having him close, especially when she could hear the war right outside. By that point, only a few shots rang out every few minutes - just enough to keep the soldiers in their spots, but not enough to signal an advance. So much of the siege was waiting, hearing a couple of shots every so often, and hoping that the Continental Army would be moving closer to the British and closer to a decisive victory.

In the morning, Ben would have to leave again, heading out into battle, but for now, she could hold onto him. Grace didn't want to sleep, but Ben's steady breathing ultimately lulled her into a dream of the future, of freedom and what it could mean.

* * *

A.N.: I feel like they really glossed over and hurried a lot of the Siege of Yorktown. It was actually a full-on siege, and not a battle. I get it, the producers had a limited budget and wanted to follow the ring more than the battle aspect of the war, but Yorktown was literally 21 days, from the beginning of the siege to the British surrender. Three weeks compressed into fifteen minutes is a lot!


	32. The First Attack

A massive storm had come out of nowhere, providing cover for the digging of the first parallel, something that the Continental Army was thankful for. Grace and Anna were holed up in the settlers' cart, Mary and Thomas joining them when the rain grew more intense, since it was far drier than many of the tents. The four of them - well, the three of them, since Thomas had fallen asleep to the steady beat of the rain - sat around, whispering about the battle that would be raging soon. Abe and Ben were out working on the parallel, and were planning on being there all night, rain or not. Caleb had run back once to tell them that they should stay put, and that everyone was fine, but they had received no more news.

They could hear gunfire, but not a lot of it, and the constant drumbeat of the rain, but not much else. Mary glanced over to where Thomas was sleeping, curled up on Anna's bed. "I cannot wait until we can have a real roof over our heads again. Even the farm was better than this… at least there is always Whitehall."

Grace nodded. "Ben and I are thinking of building a house in Setauket, when all of this is over. He wants to help build the new government, but when that is done, I think he's planning on returning to teaching."

"Selah and I have the tavern," Anna said, sitting down beside her. "He wants to sell it and start a business somewhere else, since we have so much baggage in Setauket. I doubt that will be the case, but he has been looking at Connecticut and New Jersey."

"Personally, I'm just looking forward to a good meal and a real bath," Grace confided, making the others laugh. "Something that isn't made out of whatever we can scrounge up, or whatever game the soldiers can get from the woods. And a real, hot bath. I feel like I haven't had a proper one in ages."

It seemed like the night went on forever, each of the women taking up positions sleeping on the floor of the cart, every blanket they owned spread over the wood to make it as comfortable as possible. One by one, they fell asleep, the rain lulling them into dreams about what they wanted to do after the war. They would wake up every couple of hours, checking on Thomas and taking a quick look outside, listening all the while for any hint of gunfire.

The rising sun woke Grace up. She headed out of the tent, noticing that the deluge of rain had stopped and the air had gotten chillier. She grabbed her shawl from the cart, going to start a small fire outside and put the kettle on, thinking of making coffee. The fighting had stopped, at least for now, and she could hear some of the men in camp, shouts of "You're on trench duty!" or "Hurry up with that shovel!" drifting over to the camp followers' area.

As more and more people began coming out of their tents and carts, Grace began saying hello to the neighbors, helping them get their campfires started for the day and chatting about the battle the night before. She had just returned to the fire that she had started in front of Anna's cart and Mary's tent (which were conveniently located side-by-side) when a bedraggled soldier walked up, covered in dirt and still incredibly soggy from all of the rain the night before. "Ben!" Grace hugged him tightly, not bothering to worry about the dirt and mud. "Would you like some coffee? How have you been?"

"Please," he said, sitting down one of the logs that Caleb had set out in place of chairs. Grace filled a cup of coffee, handing it over as he relayed the events of the night before. "We've begun digging the first parallel, and I have men continuing to work on it now. We're going to finish it up and start arming it within the next few days before we lead a charge and begin taking the closer redoubts."

"That's great," Grace smiled, coming to sit beside him. "I'm glad you're… well, I'm glad you're here, no matter how muddy you are, no matter the fact that you smell like you've been digging trenches all night."

"Well, I have been," Ben laughed, taking a sip of his coffee. "This is… heavenly. Oh, Abe and Caleb send their regards. Abe should be back around ten, and Caleb's shift is over at eleven. We have the men digging and fortifying things in shifts, at least until it's done."

Grace spent the next few days in the medical tents, treating any injuries the men suffered while digging and fortifying the first parallel. She had begun to sleep in Ben's tent, which wasn't too far away. He would visit as often as he could, trying his best to sleep there with her for part of the night, at least. He would come in while she was already asleep, or have to wake up in the middle of the night and leave, but she could at least see him. Sometimes he would drop by to have lunch or dinner with her, but most of the time, she would see him for a few minutes during the day while he crossed though the camp or came by to say hello while running to find Washington or one of the other generals.

When the gun placements were done, Ben came to find her, Grace sitting in his tent and working. She set her sewing down as he explained what they were going to be doing, and that he would have to be leaving in a couple of hours to begin the fight. There would be a sustained assault on the British line in order to weaken them overnight, and a charge in the morning to take one of the closer redoubts. He and Lafayette would be leading it, he told her, and they had full confidence that they could take the redoubt safely. Perhaps they would try and take one closer to the British stronghold after we capture the first one.

"So tonight is just firing on them to weaken their defenses?" Grace clarified. "Not for an actual assault?"

Ben nodded, yawning as he zoned out a bit, entirely exhausted and focusing on the glimmering light of the candle that Grace had been using to light her sewing. "We will all be solidly behind our fortifications and earthworks, so we will be in no danger tonight. The real danger comes in the morning."

"Stay here for now," Grace pleaded, taking his hand for a moment. "Stay here with me for a little while. I promise I'll wake you when you have to go and meet your men. Just please, stay here. I haven't seen more than a glimpse or two of you in the last couple of days, and I would like to see my husband before he has to go off to battle again."

Ben smiled, taking his coat off and laying down on the cot in the corner of the tent. "You have me convinced. Just a couple of hours, now. Any more and I'll risk running late for the mission."

Grace got up, giving him a kiss before sitting down, letting him lay his head in her lap. "I'll stay up, I promise." She sat up, sewing clothes for the men who had been injured, and watching him sleep, every so often running a hand through his hair and pausing to watch him for a few seconds. Lately, the only time he seemed entirely at peace, the only time he let his guard down, the only time where his eyes were not full of worry and stress, was when he was sleeping. And that was rare too, especially now that they were in the thick of a siege and several things were demanding his attention almost all of the time.

She hated having to wake him up when she was done sewing, but gently shook his shoulder anyway, whispering, "Ben… Ben, c'mon, it's time… I know, it's time to get up. I don't want you to have to go either, but it's time to wake up. It's nearing midnight."

He sat up slowly, hating the fact that he had to go so soon, but knowing that his men were assembling close by. "Thank you. I'm sure you'll hear the charge in the morning, but for now, try to get some rest, whatever you can manage. With any luck, it will be a long night for the British. For us as well, but hopefully an even longer night for the British."

She went to sleep soon after he had left, waking a few hours later to hear the first shots of the charge accompanying the rising sun. For half an hour or so, she heard volleys of gunfire and the roar of cannons, but then it all fell eerily silent. Suddenly men were coming back into the camp, Grace venturing out of the tent to see what was going on and decipher what had happened from the looks on the soldiers' faces. Many of them looked tired, but they were joking with each other and congratulating themselves on a good stand.

Grace had to get to the medical tents to see if they needed help, but was soon stopped by a platoon of French troops, one of them calling out to her. Lafayette made his way to the front of his command, and after dismissing them for the morning, he gave her a hug, kissing her cheek and joyously telling her that, "We have them cornered in the town, and redoubts nine and ten. General Washington is having men dig a second parallel and trenches moving towards them so we may take the remaining redoubts within the week. Gracie, we are surely about to win this war!"

She smiled, walking with Lafayette, who was on his way for Washington's tent. "How long do you think it will take until they surrender?"

Lafayette shrugged, saying, "It could be as soon as we take the last redoubts, or not until there are a handful of men left standing. I do not think they would want to lose that many men, but one does not know."

"It will be soon," Grace replied confidently. "We have already been here for a fortnight - how much longer can they keep up their firing if they do not have much gunpowder left? Our men will be able to take them, I am sure of it."

At that, Lafayette had to smile. "I am glad someone is confident in our cause. It is certainly energizing the men, having gotten this far. We must keep this morale up, and swiftly put an end to this siege." They paused outside of Washington's tent, Lafayette kissing her cheeks again and telling her that, "I will see you again soon. We plan on mounting an attack tomorrow night - we will be firing on them all night, and then attacking the final redoubts tomorrow night. I will be moving my forces towards redoubt nine, and the Americans will take redoubt ten, and then in the following days, there will be a movement inwards, capturing their parallels and their final bastions, if all goes well. I am sure I will see you again before that."

"If we do not see each other, I wish you the best of luck, Monsieur General," Grace said, giving him a hug before Lafayette went to greet Washington and she headed back towards the medical tent, where she would be busy all day. There was still a lot to be done, but she was glad that her friend was confident in the army's capabilities, and that they had planned their strikes precisely. With a bit of luck, they would have the British surrendering and an end to the siege by the end of October.


	33. The Second Attack

It was already dark out when Grace began stitching up a soldier's arm. He had been struck with a pickaxe while he was working on the second parallel, and needed a couple of stitches. The man who had done it had meant no harm, but they were tired and in cramped quarters, swinging pickaxes and shovels, so Grace and Dr. Wippold had expected some injuries.

For the last few days, the Continental Army had been working on the second parallel and a series of trenches connecting it to the first, as well as trenches moving slowly towards Redoubts 9 and 10. Ben had stopped by to bring her dinner, since it had been a busy day for both of them. They ate right outside of the medical tents, catching each other up on the state of the troops and their progress towards the last British holdouts outside of Yorktown proper. As soon as they were done, Ben had to give her a kiss and leave, since they were preparing to move more guns into the second parallel and into the trenches.

Around 9 o'clock, as Dr. Wippold would later estimate, Grace was stitching up the soldier's arm, talking to him about how he would be able to get back to work in a couple of days, when they heard the first shot ring out. By that time, they had gotten used to random bouts of gunfire, but they would still look up when the volleys began, some sort of instinctual reaction to make sure that they were not in danger. Grace looked up towards the tent door, shaking her head and going back to work as the gunfire grew stronger. "Sounds like they're trying to get them to use up their powder," she commented, concentrating on the wound that she was working on.

"I would say so," the soldier nodded, looking away from his arm. Gritting his teeth, he kept talking, trying to distract himself. "The trenches were nearly done when I came in here. I would expect them to be finished by now."

Grace carefully tied off the thread she had been using, telling the man to, "head back to your tent and get some proper rest. Keep it wrapped until the morning, and then keep it washed out and free of dirt. You should be able to get back to your duties in a day or so, if you're careful about it."

"Thank you, ma'am," he smiled, getting up off of the cot he had been assigned and tucking his coat under his arm before he left.

Grace followed him to the door of the tent, looking outside to see the faint muzzle flashes of the guns that were trained on the British line. The volley would be kept up throughout the night, Grace staying in the medical tents partially to be there to tend to anyone who came in with bullet wounds and partially because she knew Ben would be in the trenches all night. He barely slept anymore, but he was full of energy, busy organizing his troops and talking to Washington and the other generals, planning how to capture Yorktown and shorten the siege. Grace was lucky if she saw him for a meal and a nap every day.

It was around two in the morning when a young private came in, a bullet having grazed his shoulder. Walking into the tent, he woke Grace up, since she had been sleeping on the cot nearest to the front of the tent. He as in no danger, but did need a couple of stitches. "How is the barrage going?" Grace asked as she set to work, cleaning out his wound as best she could.

The soldier told her that they were doing well, that it seemed like they had a never ending supply of gunpowder and ammunition, while the British were using up gunpowder far too quickly. He seemed confident that they would be able to move into Yorktown proper in no time. As she watched the cavalier young soldier leave the tent, Grace wished it was true, that they had the upper hand for once, and that a British surrender was inevitable. It didn't seem like it, since the siege had been going on for a while, but as long as they maintained their position, they would not starve or run out of munitions any time soon.

She had just gotten back to sleep when someone else walked into the tent, bending a bit to kiss her cheek. Grace sat up, rubbing her eyes to see Ben standing there, looking exhausted, but still with a smile on his face. "Hello, you," Grace smiled, standing to give him a kiss. "You do realize it's the middle of the night, right?"

"I do." He led her outside, looking to where the gunfire continued before turning back and saying, "I've just come through on my way back from consulting with General Washington." He lowered his voice even more, leaning in conspiratorially. "Tomorrow, just after sunset, we take Redoubts 9 and 10. Lafayette is leading the French troops towards 9, and Hamilton, Laurens, and I will lead a charge on 10. We should have them captured before this time tomorrow."

"That's wonderful. But are you ever going to sleep?"

Ben signed, running a hand through his hair. "Tomorrow afternoon, I promise I'll be back. Get Eve to cover for you here. That's her name, Eve, isn't it?"

"Yes. I'll talk to her in the morning, but it shouldn't be a problem. In fact, Dr. Wippold and I have been talking, and we think there is going to be a decent need for medics in the redoubts, once you have them and they need defending. Redoubt 10 has enough room to fit a small medical area, if not a tent, safely behind the walls. Once we capture 9 and 10, and you all begin moving forward to their final defenses, that's when they're going to try their hardest, and that's when you will need the most help."

Although he wasn't happy with the idea, Ben had to agree. "We will need someone there, for smaller injuries, and to get people with larger injuries closer to the real medical tents," he told her, no matter how much he hated to admit it. "We will need a lot more people when we begin defending the redoubts and moving forward, because they are going to try to press us back here. Now I have to get going and find Lafayette, but I promise I will see you tomorrow. Two o'clock?"

"Two o'clock. Give Lafayette my regards."

"I will." She watched him go, jogging off between the tents, until he had melded into the darkness.

Ben did manage to get a nap the next day, but Grace was too keyed-up to sleep properly. So she sat up while he slept, making a basket full of bandages and watching him dream. With any luck, they would be moving forward tonight, pressing the British further back into Yorktown. But there would be a big battle ahead.

Grace was in the medical tents yet again as the sun set. She had just started preparing things to be taken to the hopefully soon-to-be-captured redoubts when Lafayette stopped by, just to say hello and let her know that the French were moving to the other side of the camp, from where they would ambush the British guards in Redoubt 9. "I merely wished to return your wishes from last night," he beamed, kissing her on both cheeks. "Monsieur Tallmadge is gathering his men with Colonel Hamilton and Colonel Laurens for an attack on Redoubt 10. I expect there will be many of our men coming to see you tonight, as the British have heavily fortified their final redoubts."

"Very well, I will let Dr. Wippold know to keep as many beds open as possible while we ready ourselves to move some supplies into the redoubts," Grace nodded, walking with him as Lafayette headed outside. He had to bid her goodbye soon after, since he would be leading a charge soon, Grace wishing him good luck and telling him to "visit when you have taken your redoubt, so I know you came out of it unscathed."

She went back to work preparing to move into one of the redoubts as the first round of gunfire began. The French were on the move, and, after they had drawn attention towards Redoubt 9, Ben and his brigade would be moving towards Redoubt 10 with their bayonets. Just as Lafayette predicted, there was a steady trickle of injured men coming into the medical tents, being intercepted by Dr. Wippold himself and some of the other women who were working there. Grace spent most of the first couple of hours preparing for the move, which she would be making in the middle if the night, as soon as the redoubt had been captured. Even though she was busy in the supply tent, she could hear the shuffling footsteps of the injured men, the muffled cries of soldiers having bullets removed from their bodies, the murmuring of the women trying to get them calmed down as they worked, and the coughing from the sickbeds that never seemed to fully stop. Over all of it was the sound of gunfire and yelling coming from the two separate battles that were happening as the Continental Army was taking over the two redoubts that remained before the British lines.

A courier was dispatched to find Grace a little after midnight, the two of them heading for the redoubt with baskets of supplies. There was still fighting going on - the redoubt had been taken, but the British were not going down without a fight - when they ran over, trying to remain in the shadow of the massive redoubt, which provided some cover. For the briefest second, Grace caught a glimpse of Ben on the battlefield, something she had never seen before. He fought like a seasoned soldier, and was ruthlessly cutting people down. She turned her head away as he ran a redcoat through with his sword, a fury in his eyes that almost made him a different man entirely. He was a completely different person on the battlefield, but she hardly had time to meditate on it as they made their way past a Continental guard into the redoubt.

The courier left her in a corner of the redoubt, a corner where she could look up and see the rows of cannons and men with guns firing down on the British. There was no way she could get hurt there, since the medical area was below a set of stairs that led to the exposed area that was now supporting Continental soldiers. She was perfectly sheltered as she began setting up a makeshift medical station to the sound of gunfire coming from above. Eventually, the firing would calm down as the British moved to regroup and plan an attack on the redoubts, but as she laid out a mat on the ground, the gunfire was still incredibly loud.

When the firing had ceased, Ben made his way into the redoubt, coming to find her as she was putting together the medical station for the next day. The rest of the injured had been moved to the real medical tents back in camp, but she would be useful during the battles to come, when there was no way they could send mildly injured men all of the way back to camp when they needed all of the hands that they could get. Grace was quiet as he came over, his uniform splashed with blood. "Hey. I'm glad you're alright."

"I'm glad you made it in here safely," he said, giving her a kiss. "I was worried, when they sent Billy to find you so early."

"Ben, you… I've never seen you like that, like you looked out there. You looked like… not like you were enjoying it, but like you had no problem with it. Like a man on a mission, driven by some sort of fiery passion that, well, I can hardly describe it. That look in your eyes, it's like hunger, but -"

He smirked a bit, saying, "It's a different kind of hunger. There's the kind of famished, haven't eaten all day hunger, and then there's the hunger for victory. The hunger to be the one who survives on the battlefield, the hunger that makes you fight for your life, because if you falter even a bit, it could be you getting shot or run though with a bayonet. And the hunger to do this." He reached out and kissed her again, much more aggressively than before.

"Ben!"

"I'm sorry. You must think I'm terrible sometimes. I've missed you." He kissed her gently, offering to help her finish unpacking everything and setting up for the battle the next day.

Grace shook her head, saying, "I'm nearly done. But I am rather trapped in here. Well, not trapped, but it would be safer if I stayed here. I'd like it if you would stay too."

Several Continental soldiers were filtering into the redoubt, readying their muskets for the next day and laying down on the coats, making beds out of whatever they could get to. "Of course." Ben disappeared for a few minutes, coming back with arms full of straw and setting them down on the mat, draping his coat over everything. "It's a better bed than a lot of them have."

Grace smiled, laying down next to him as Ben wrapped his arms around her. "They're coming back in the morning, aren't they?"

"They will. The redcoats are regrouping and coming up with a plan of attack, but we will be defending our position," he told her, Grace moving closer to him. "Lafayette sent word that his men captured Redoubt 9. They suffered heavy losses, but they have captured it nonetheless. Abe and Caleb are here, though."

"We can find them in the morning," Grace resolved, closing her eyes and hoping they could get a bit of rest before sunrise. Even though a battle was looming, she felt a sense of calm, having Ben there and being able to talk to him as they looked up at the stars, looking past the guns and out into the universe. "Do you remember those nights where we would climb out onto the roof of the barn and just stare at the sky?"

"I do," he sighed, thinking of simpler times, when their only worry was being caught or falling off of the roof. "You always thought you were going to fall, so you would hardly ever let go of my hand. And I always told you that it wouldn't help, that if you went over the edge, you would just be dragging me with you."

"I haven't looked up at the sky like this in a long time," Grace mused, thinking of all of the nights she had been working in the medical tents, or too worried and concentrated on the task at hand to stop and look at the stars. "You know, I feel like a lot is going to happen tomorrow, but we will come out of it alright."

"I sure hope so," Ben replied. "I hope so." He held her tightly, whispering a prayer for their safety the next day, praying that the faith his father had instilled in him as a child would do something to calm his nerves.

They were woken up by gunfire, Ben practically leaping up and pulling Grace with him. She gave him a kiss, telling him to be careful as he dashed off to get his regiment together. Soon enough, hey were firing back at the British. Grace herself had time to grab a bit of breakfast before she got to work. On her way back from the campfire the men had started to cook from, she glanced up, seeing Caleb manning a canon, Abe reloading his musket next to him. Anna was further along the line, rushing water up and down to the men. She could just make out Ben's figure at the opposite side of the redoubt, shouting commands to his men as he aimed a musket at their attackers.

Their defense continued like this for a few hours, Grace sewing up and bandaging wounds and treating cases of dehydration. She had to send a few men to the main medical tents back in camp, but they were doing fairy well for themselves. Their luck had been too good, and it had to turn.

The battle itself would be won by the Continental Army, with the rebels keeping control of the redoubts and getting closer to the British line. But for the small ring of spies from Setauket, it would not go as well. Grace had just sat a man down and started slowly feeding him water when Anna and a soldier came over to her, carrying Abe between them. He had been shot in the shoulder and was bleeding severely, a scarlet stain rapidly spreading down the arm of his shirt.

They set him down, Grace grabbing bandages and packing the wound tightly. "You have to get him to the main camp. Dr. Wippold needs to get the bullet out and sew him up. This is too deep for me to pry out myself, not with what I have here. I can't risk messing anything up."

Abe looked to her from where he was sitting on the ground. He had grown pale and took a moment to speak, Grace continuing to work, tying the bandages as tightly as she could in hopes that they could save his arm. As she helped them get him to his feet, he finally managed to tell her, "Be careful. You and Ben... deserve a good life together. You've always been some of my best friends."

"And you've been one of mine. Now I need you to go and fight this. Fight it, Abe." She walked with them as Anna and the soldier started heading for camp. "I need you to fight for me, for our friends, for Mary, for Thomas. We need you. Don't give up on us now."

She and Anna shared a glance as she let them go, bidding them good luck and begging them to hurry. There would be no news for hours, Grace worrying about Abe as she worked. She had bandaged his arm well, but there was still a great chance that he could lose his arm, if he survived at all. While she was patching other soldiers up, the nagging thought of her friend dying across the battlefield refused to leave her head.


	34. The Final Battle

It was a long day, Grace working in the redoubt until nightfall, when she was replaced by another woman from the medical tents so she could get some sleep. But first, she had to find Abe. Anna had come back with good news earlier in the day - Abe would most likely survive but he was weak. Mary had pulled the bullet out of his arm herself, since she had been working in the tents with Dr. Wippold. He was doing well for being shot, but he still needed to rest and avoid infections.

Ben had stopped by a few times during their defense of the redoubt, even if it was only to say hello or grab a bite to eat. At least Grace had been able to see him for a little while. She saw him from a distance as she made her way back to camp, gathering his soldiers in the waning sunlight and briefing them on what was going to happen next. He sat atop his favorite horse, gesturing as he spoke. From where he was, he saw the silhouette of a woman heading back towards camp, smiling to himself because he knew it was her.

As soon as she had reached camp and waved at the guards on duty, she set out for the tent where Abe was lying. Mary had been assigned to that tent, since she refused to leave his side. Anna had taken Thomas to her cart, where he would end up staying for the night. Abe was asleep when she got there, but Mary was busy wrapping up wounds. "How's he been?" Grace asked, coming over to where she was working.

Mary pursed her lips, glancing over at her husband's sleeping form. "He managed to eat a real meal earlier. He seems to be getting better, bit by bit. I've been making him sleep as much as he can, since he needs to save his strength for healing that arm." She turned to the soldier who sat before her, saying, "You're done. It's not nearly as bad as it looked."

"Thank you, madam," he nodded, getting up and heading for his tent for the night.

As she put away the extra bandages, Mary continued, "I was terrified when they brought him in. I thought… for a while, I thought that this was it. All of that work, all of the secrets, covering up everything we had been doing, that all of it would have led to this. If he had bled out and not made it to see the freedom that he had been working so hard for, that all of us sacrificed so much for… I cannot begin to imagine…"

"It's best not to think about it or dwell on it for too long," Grace offered, bringing a cup of water to a man at the end of the row of beds. He had been coughing for a few moments, and was trying to catch his breath. Eventually, he managed to stop coughing, but not before he had turned incredibly red. "I try not to think about things like that when Ben goes into battle."

"They're going to press forward towards the British line tonight, I think," Mary sighed, sitting down on an empty cot. "I can hardly sleep… I think I'll stay here. They will certainly need people manning these tents, if they have no cover between them and the British."

Grace resolved that she would stay there with her, since Mary needed someone there with her, she could tell. For a while, they sat up and talked while one or two men came in in need of help, but when Mary propped open one of the tent flaps so they could get some air, she called Grace over. A mass of men was headed towards the camp, some of them supporting others, some clutching arms or legs. The attack had begun, and they could tell that it was going to be a brutal one.

Rushing to help the closest man, Grace ducked under his arm, helping another soldier bring his friend into the tent. He had been run through with a sword, and was clutching his stomach. They got him onto a cot and his friend ran for the doctor as Grace stripped his shirt away, taking stock of how badly he had been injured. Mary brought over a bottle of whiskey, the man taking a long drink. "What's your name?"

"Benjamin. Benjamin Nelson… from New… New Jersey," he said weakly, every breath bringing another wave of pain over him.

The doctor came over, starting to work as Grace kept feeding the young soldier whiskey. He looked like he was maybe 20, if that. He was so young, and he had so much more of a life left to live. "My name is Grace. My husband's name is Benjamin too," she said, keeping him focused as Dr. Wippold set to work dousing his wounds with water, trying to clean off the dirt of the battlefield. He would have to stick his hand into the man's abdomen, trying to see if any of his organs had been punctured before he set to work sewing him up. Grace knew this, and knew that he would be in a lot of pain. If he survived the night, he could still get an infection and die anyway. "We're from New York."

"Tallmadge? I know he… has a wife who… has red haAAAGH," he screamed as the doctor stretched the wound, making sure that nothing vital had been punctured. Breathing quickly, he looked back to Grace, who took his hand.

She nodded, letting him squeeze her hand as the doctor began to stitch the wound up. "Here, drink more. Good. Yes, Ben's my husband. We met back at home… we grew up together, actually. Come on, deep breath. Don't panic now. The worst part is over. Do you have anyone special back at home?"

Benjamin smiled a bit, saying, "Elizabeth… she lives down the road from my… from my… father's farm." He closed his eyes, still breathing but overcome by pain. His grip on her hand relaxed, Grace realizing that he had passed out from the intensity of the pain. She let the doctor work, stepping away from the bed to see that the tent was now almost full, men coming in from the battle every few minutes. Mary was hard at work, and another woman had joined her.

"My goodness, what's happening out there?" Grace wondered aloud as she moved to a bed where a man was holding his head. He had been grazed by a bullet and needed to be bandaged, so she got to work quickly as the others moved between beds, tending to the injured and dying.

"The lobsters are brutal tonight, ma'am. Thank you. Yes, they are using the last stores of their powder well, but they are also relying on their swords."

When she was done bandaging the man up, Dr. Wippold sent her to their supply tent for more whiskey and more thread. On her way back, she could see part of the battle that was going on nearby, and the groups of men slowly making their way back, in need of help. But she also knew that if there were this many men coming back, even more would lie dead in the battlefield, and more would be flooding the redoubt, looking for medical attention for smaller, less serious wounds. There were hundreds of men rushing for the British line, but there were so many people coming back injured that Grace could only wonder how empty the field was by now. When a man passed her with what was left of his arm tied in a tourniquet, she made a decision. "I've been summoned," she told the doctor, dropping a basket off with him before jogging over to the tent that she and Ben shared. Well, when he was actually in camp.

In the darkness of the tent, she shed her boots, untying her apron and unbuttoning her dress as quickly as she could in the chilly air. Apron, dress, corset, boots, it all had to come off before she began pulling on the clothes that had been stashed after their journey south. She would have no coat, since Ben only had one, but it would be enough. There were extra weapons in the redoubt, and if she kept her hair up and pinned into a hat, the darkness would do the rest. They needed every man that they could get out there, and by now, they seemed to need every capable person that they could get. So she pulled on a uniform and set off for the redoubt, grabbing a sword, a pistol, a horn of gunpowder, and as much ammunition as she could fit into her pockets.

Dozens of men were trudging back to the camp as she made her way forward and into battle, where British and Continental soldiers mixed, cutting each other down. Grace took a deep breath, rushing for a redcoat who had driven a Continental soldier back until he had tripped. She braced herself, plunging her sword into the soft flesh of his stomach before he could bayonet the young rebel, the soldier falling in pain as she pulled her sword back. It had been that easy. She offered her hand, helping the rebel soldier up. "Thank you," he grunted before rushing forward again.

So that was it. Kill or be killed, it seemed. Help your fellow men, and rush as far forward as you could, getting closer to the British line. They only had that line before they reached the town, just the last defenses before a surrender. It seemed like she was fighting for ages, slicing down British soldiers, shooting a few of them from a distance, and dodging their weapons. Not a lot of them were using guns, since they were so low on powder and ammunition, but they were equally as skilled with their bayonets.

One of them lunged forward out of the grass, Grace ducking out of his way and parrying his bayonet attack. He froze as she impaled him, his eyes widening as he had a revelation. "You… woman…"

"Soldier," she breathed as he sunk to his knees. "We are all soldiers." She watched the light fade from his eyes, looking up to the rest of the field after they had turned glassy, reflecting the light of the moon. It was different from watching it happen in the medical tents, when she held people's hands as they died. Far different. Flashes of gunfire were going off all over the field, smoke obscuring much of her view as she moved.

Another British soldier had come for her, but was cut down by a pistol shot from a Continental man. "What are you doing here?" the Continental soldier asked, stopping her before she could thank him.

She got a good look at him, realizing that it had been Ben who saved her. "I want to fight. Your men are coming back in droves. You need help, as much help as you can get."

"You idiot," he scolded, reloading his pistol in a moment of calm in the middle of the battlefield.

"I am sick and tired of being behind the lines, being what you and the other soldiers come home to, having to sit there and stitch people up and hold their hands as they die, all the while hoping and praying that you make it back - move!" She shoved him to the side just in time to avoid a shot from a wounded redcoat who was getting closer. As the redcoat reloaded, Ben watched Grace spring forward, knocking his gun out of his hand and running him though with the sword she had been carrying.

"Get back to the medical tents. That's an order," Ben called, making his way over to her.

She wheeled around, telling him, "You're not my commander."

"I am your husband, and I need you alive. If you don't head back there right now, I swear to God, I will run you through with my sword so you have to get back to the safety of the medical tent."

She pursed her lips, but stuck her sword into her belt and kissed him one last time. "Get back to me alive, Major." After almost an hour and a half on the battlefield, Grace was forced to head back to camp, change back into her dress, and go back to the medical tents, trying to keep the Continental soldiers alive. But it had been an adventure, and she had managed to save Ben's life, and those of a few other soldiers.

The sun was just rising when the gunfire fell silent, Grace and Mary stepping out of the tent to see the smoke of the battle clearing. "Something must have happened, either a surrender or a ceasefire," Mary said, going back into the tent and continuing to tend to wounds and the ill.

Mary was right. A few hours later, when the first women arrived bringing the injured men something to eat for breakfast, Ben came with them, bringing good news. He looked exhausted, battle-worn and ready to sleep on his feet, but he was smiling. Grace set down the bucket of water she had been carrying to give him a hug. "They fell back," he whispered, leaning in to kiss her. "Hamilton stole some of their cannons, we turned their own guns on the city, and they fell back. This morning a soldier came out with a white flag… the armies are negotiating the terms of surrender. We've won the battle, and if they can negotiate an end to the fighting, this could mean an end to the war."


	35. Sweet Victory

The next morning, Grace woke to the smell of coffee being made across the camp, the men joking and laughing with each other. There was no gunfire, no screaming, no fear. There was still pain, in the medical tents, but no flood of men looking for help, clutching wounds. For once, the siege had fallen silent. And Ben was there. He slept in until she was about to leave, waking up just in time to say goodbye. "I'll be in the medical tents," she told him, bending to give him a kiss as he sat up in bed. "They still need my help, even if the battle is over."

"Alright. I'll tell you what, I'll bring you lunch. I have to talk with Washington and Lafayette and the others about the terms of surrender, but I will find you and bring you lunch, I promise. No running off to my command this time, no stopping by and only seeing you for an hour or so every day. A proper lunch, and a proper supper," Ben promised, thinking that he had hardly seen her for the last three weeks or so. He made sure to stop by as often as he could, but anyone would know that that was hardly enough. "We'll get to be us again soon. Really us, not

"That sounds great," she smiled, giving him one last kiss before heading out to where the medical tents had been set up. They had built a small fire in the middle of the circle of tents, and Anna stood there with Thomas, making coffee as Mary was in checking on Abe. "Good morning."

"Morning," Anna nodded, carefully taking a kettle out of the fire and pouring its contents into a few mugs. "Care for some coffee? I've been out of milk for days, but we still have coffee."

"Please and thank you. Hello there, Thomas!" She scooped him up, giving him a hug. "Ooh, you really are getting big." She set him down rather quickly, taking a seat next to the fire. "I'm sorry, Thomas, but I'm not feeling my best." Looking to Anna, she added, "I think all of the late nights and living off of naps and bread has not the best for me."

Anna gave her a knowing look as she handed over a mug. "You haven't looked well for a few weeks now. I know the siege has been sapping a lot of your energy, but you may actually be getting sick. Some of the men in these tents are horribly ill, and you've been spending a whole lot of your time with them."

"It's not that," Grace assured her as she drank. "I know, working in the medical tents, sometimes sickness is unavoidable, but I know I'm not falling ill. It's just the nervous exhaustion, all of the worrying and the fighting, and hardly ever sleeping. A bit of coffee and I'll be back on my feet. Besides, I've been spending most of my time with the wounded men, not the ones who are ill."

Mary came out of the tent, pouring some coffee to bring to Abe. She had heard a bit of their conversation and decided to send Thomas in with the mug for his father, instructing him to, "Bring this to Papa. Be very careful. It's hot. There you go, just like that. Papa would love to see you." As soon as Thomas was out of earshot, she turned to Grace. "I know you have spent this siege worrying, but so have I. You had Ben out there in battle, but Abe was out on the battlefield right beside him, and he's been shot, for goodness' sake. If anyone ought to be getting sick, it would be me."

It was Anna's turn to speak up, saying, "We've been talking, and, well, we have both noticed that you've been a bit… different lately. It may be the exhaustion and the stress, but Grace, we know that isn't all of it. You've been sick, all of those times when you made an excuse to get out of these tents, whether it be running to get water or more bandages or… or whatever excuse you thought of to be out of there. You've left like clockwork in the middle of the morning for days now. Mary and I know that it's nearly halfway to lunchtime when you do. You may think none of us have noticed, but I have enough siblings to know…"

"And I have a son," Mary reminded her knowingly. "You haven't been fooling me. I know what to look for."

"What you're implying..." Grace bit her lip, begging the both of them to stay silent. "Please, you can't tell Ben. He doesn't need another thing to worry about right now. You mustn't tell him."

Anna smiled, coming to give her a hug. "Well, congratulations. How long have you known?"

"I figured it out right after we got here. I went to see one of the midwives in the camp followers' area when I suspected it. She thinks… well, it would be about two months, maybe a bit more right about now, since we've been camped out here for three weeks. The child is a small one, and Ben has been away far too much to have noticed all that much. I hardly ever see him. Now that he's back in camp… well, I would rather tell him myself. He'll notice soon enough anyway. Please, don't mention anything."

"Very well," Mary smiled, looking through the tent door to see Thomas sitting on Abe's bed, talking to his father. "Just… let us know when you tell him. So it longer has to be our secret."

Grace promised that she would, as long as they stayed silent. "Like the old days, when one of us would make the others promise to stay silent about the most trivial things. How we would make each other swear to secrecy, to only be talked about between us."

Anna laughed, agreeing that she would be quiet. Mary shook her head, saying, "Those were silly things, but this, well, this is a real secret. And I will vow to keep it until the time you tell me otherwise. But I have to ask... what do you want to name it?"

"If it's a son, I think the only fitting name would be George... or Samuel, after Ben's brother. And if it's a girl… well, I should think Martha, after Lady Washington. Or Susannah, after Ben's mother."

Ben arrived with lunch around noon, Anna and Mary almost immediately looking at Grace, who shook her head at them as he sat down. "What was all of that about?"

"Nothing," Grace replied abruptly, giving her friends a look that told them to be quiet. "They were just wondering about the status of negotiations, but I thought I should, well, that you would rather not be badgered about it right after so much has happened. It's hardly fair to you that I ask right in the middle of negotiations."

"Washington believes the negotiations will last well into tomorrow," Ben told her as he unpacked their lunch. "He has hardly told me everything, but personally, I think there is more in the works than is being said in front of me."

Two days later, Grace, Mary, Thomas, and Anna stood together behind a line of Continental officers, watching as the British officially and entirely surrendered. The redcoats marched defiantly, at first trying to drown out the Continental drums and fifes, until Lafayette had given the command for the Continental and French forces to play "Yankee Doodle". The British handed over their flags, laying down their arms in a procession that no one there would ever forget. Even Thomas, who would, later in life, only sort of remember scores of men in red marching past, in front of all of the men in blue on horses, had the image ingrained into his mind.

"They're officially surrendering," Grace smiled, looking to her friends. "This is it. Ben tells me that this is the end. General Cornwallis issued his order to surrender last night. We've won. With all good luck, we will be an independent nation, treaties and all, by the next anniversary of our declaring independence."

"I can hardly believe it," Mary beamed, pointing out the horses to Thomas, who began waving at them. "It has been a long, difficult journey. Look, Thomas, there's Papa."

"All of the sacrifices we have made, all of the things we have done… I wonder how much of it made this moment possible," Anna said, watching to procession. "I wonder how much of this was brought about by everything we did."

Grace had a simple response. "All of it."

When the surrender had been completed, Grace went to find Ben, but was stopped short by Washington himself, who kissed her hand, thanking her for everything and offering to let her accompany the army as it made its way to greet Congress in Philadelphia. She gratefully accepted, telling him that she would be honored to follow the people who had just secured the freedom of their newborn nation.

Lafayette found her next, kissing her on both cheeks and hugging her tightly. They had been friends for years now, and he would be coming with on the trip to Philadelphia, but she knew that one day, he would have to sail back to France. "Cherie, I have missed you. We must talk, as much as we can, before I go. First there is much to negotiate, but time flows quickly in the glory of victory."

"Marquis," Ben's voice called as he made his way over, moving past reuniting families and groups of officers with their horses, "may I borrow my wife for a moment?"

"But of course, Major Tallmadge," Lafayette smiled, promising Grace that he would find her again later on.

Ben pulled her close, kissing her and whispering, "We won."

"We won," Grace smiled back, taking his hands. Her eyes grew teary as she repeated it. "We won. I can't believe it. We've won, and the war… well, the war is practically over, now isn't it?"

He nodded, just saying, "We won. I love you."

"I love you too. But Ben, there's something else… more good news," she said, taking a deep breath before telling him that, "I didn't want to worry you earlier. But I really must tell you before… before you notice." She paused, Ben raising an eyebrow. "I'm… you're going to be a father."

His eyes widened, Ben pulling her to his chest. "He'll grow up in a free country."

Grace nodded, holding him tightly as she finally allowed herself to cry. They were free, Ben was safe, and their family was growing. There was still a lot to be done, but this victory was a sweet one.

* * *

A.N.: Aww, how cute. The war might be over, but the trouble for our spies isn't done quite yet... next chapter coming soon!


	36. The Journey to Philadelphia

_Grace Tallmadge, or Whatever Name Disgraces our Family,_

 _It is with regret that I have learned of your engagement and your decision to follow the Continental Army. Deciding to marry the Tallmadge boy, despite all warnings to the contrary, has made me realize how your allegiances have shifted and how you have brought shame upon our family and upon its good reputation. Thus, my wife and I, as well as Mother, will no longer visit nor write, although this note is an exception affording you the proper courtesy. We are deeply ashamed of the fact that you have abandoned the principles that Mother and Father instilled in you from a young age, principles that I tried my best to continue to uphold even after Father's unfortunate passing._

 _I will never visit your home, and my children will never be there to visit either. When you still wanted to marry the Tallmadge boy after his treason had been revealed, Mother and I decided that it was enough, that it had brought too much shame on our family and that you had passed the point of return. You have always been the rebellious one, but that fateful decision took it too far. Mother's heart is frail, and thy actions and decisions, most of all following the rebel army, have put her in a very poor state. She would write herself, but she has fallen ill and lost that capacity, after you ran off from the good family that was supporting you in Setauket._

 _As for the man you have chosen to marry, neither Mother nor I can give our blessing to him or to this unholy union. Your family is and always will be loyal to His Majesty the King, and we will not accept traitors in our bloodline. None of your family will ever accept him, nor the bastard children that will come of such a union. From this moment onward, we are family in name and blood only._

 _As for myself, I will delight in finding you again, in reminding you how you have thrown away the good English stock that you come from, polluting it with the blood of a traitor. Should I ever have the misfortune to meet your Judas of a husband, I will take much pleasure in reminding him of the rightful authority of His Majesty King George, perhaps more permanently than a pamphlet or a rousing speech could. He will be reminded of his place as a reverend's son, one loyal to his god and his king, should he return at all._

 _Thus, I must conclude by sending my deepest regrets that you have chosen this path. It is far too late to come back from, and you have brought much shame to Mother and I. This will be my final letter, and I do not expect a reply, for you will not receive one if you chose to write. Farewell, dear sister._

Grace sat in silence, reading and rereading the letter. The door of the tent opened, Ben coming in to say hello. "The men are beginning to pack their tents. We are moving out in the evening. I've arranged for you to ride in a wagon, so you can rest."

"Thank you," Grace said, putting a hand to her growing stomach. Her voice was hollow, and Ben could tell that something was wrong as he sat down next to her.

"What have you there? Is it bad news from Setauket?"

"You remember my older brother, I'm sure. He was never all that fond of you, but he knew how happy you make me, so he put up with it. He joined the King's Army, trying to live up to my father's legacy, and he moved his family out of Setauket. This is from him. He… he's threatened both of us. They are all veiled threats, but… well, read this and you will see what I mean," she told him, handing the letter over. "He says that… that he would rather kill you than properly meet you."

Ben took the letter in one hand, putting his other arm around her shoulders as he read. Finally, he set the letter in his lap, telling her that, "If he truly is this bent on finding you, and if he wishes harm on us, I would suggest that you go by your other name."

"My other name? I thought I had given her up when I came here," Grace sighed, shaking her head. "I finally thought I could just write to you as myself."

"It would keep you safer. In all of your public writings, in all of our documents, I would suggest signing them as Miss Mary Floyd," he said frankly. "No matter how much you dislike using the name, it will keep you infinitely safer. He will think I married someone else, and that you have come to your senses."

"Ben, I would hate to deny it, denying the name that I have taken, the name that I have wanted to share with you for so long now. For years, I had wanted to be a Tallmadge, and I would hate to deny that now."

Shaking his head, he insisted that, "This will help to keep you safe. For your sake, and for our family's. When we announce the marriage, he will surely read of it. Using your code name will ensure your safety. Don't worry, we will all still call you Grace, but on paper, well, it will have to be different. You will be a Tallmadge, and that will resolve it all." She sighed, allowing herself to lay her head on his shoulder. "And I promise I will always be here to protect you."

They sat there and talked for a while, Ben eventually moving to start packing up his papers and Grace folding their clothes into valises, all to be packed into a cart as they made their way north again. By the early afternoon, their things had all been put away, and they had readied the cart to move out later in the day. They stopped to say goodbye to Abe, Mary, and Thomas, who were heading for Setauket as soon as they had packed their cart. Abe had a farm to get back to, after all. He had promised to find Grace a job at DeJong's Tavern, for when she returned and needed to make money while Ben negotiated with Congress for the pay that they owed him and so many others.

"Be careful," Mary told her, handing Thomas to Abe and giving Grace a hug. Abe set Thomas in the wagon before saying his goodbyes to Ben. "That baby has had more than enough of fright and worry in the last few months. He deserves a break."

"Thank you," Grace smiled, telling her to have a safe trip home, promising that they would be back as soon as they could. There was a lot to do in Philadelphia, but they were looking forward to coming home, seeing their friends and neighbors again. She fished a letter out of her pocket, adding, "Please get this to Reverend Tallmadge. It explains everything, how we were essentially married but how we want to have the service in his church on July 4th, how we won and will be on our way home to Setauket after visiting Congress, about the baby… if you could bring this to him, I would be incredibly thankful."

"Of course," Mary nodded, tucking the letter into a bag in the cart as Abe hitched up the horse. "I'll send Abe with it as soon as he goes into town for provisions."

Grace and Ben watched them go, the cart rolling off into the distance as the Woodhulls headed back to Setauket, finally going back to their normal lives. They would take a while to rebuild and sort out their affairs after the war, but they were eager to return to their quiet farm, the cabbage fields, and the friends that they had been surrounded by for all of their lives.

When it was time to begin the journey to Philadelphia, Ben brought Grace over to a rather ornate-looking carriage, telling her that she would be able to travel comfortably. They would be riding until midnight, and the men would camp out before they began marching again in the morning. He would have to be on his horse, leading his men as usual, but he assured her that she would be in good company, and that he would come back to check on her as soon as they had stopped for the night.

After helping her up into the carriage, Ben left to untie his horse and meet Hamilton and Washington, who would be riding with him. Grace sat there for a moment, surveying what, for the last three and a half weeks, had been her home. The tents had been cleared away now, leaving behind only the fire pits that the men had made and some rubble from their campsites. Many of the British defenses had been torn down, and everything else had been packed away, either in carts or in packs that the men were carrying. A graveyard was built close to the trees, small crosses sticking out of the ground where all of the men who had died in battle or in the medical tents had been buried. They would forever look over the town, the last major victory of what would become known as the American Revolutionary War.

Yorktown itself was already being rebuilt, with the Patriots who lived there coming back into the city and starting to repair their homes and their shops. Many of the Loyalists had left with General Clinton, trying to leave before the Continental victory became too well-known. The wealthiest of them were already on ships headed back to England. Peggy was among them, as Grace would later find out. Arnold had sent her ahead as he had to deal with his men in the colonies, trying to organize their departure.

The carriage door opened again, shaking Grace out of her thoughts. The man climbing into the seat opposite her was someone she knew well, someone she would be delighted to travel with. "Bonjour, Madame Tallmadge," Lafayette smiled, taking his seat just as they started moving.

"Good evening," Grace beamed, moving to kiss him on both cheeks, as was their custom. "Are you my designated traveling companion?"

"Despite what it may have seemed during the war, with my living in the camps among my men, I do enjoy the privileges afforded to a marquis, even in America," he laughed, looking out of the window to see Yorktown already shrinking in the distance behind them, "and when I heard that you were expecting a child, I simply could not let you walk or ride all of the way to Philadelphia. The journey is nearly a week long, if we travel all day and camp out at night. A woman in your condition should not be exposed to the elements for that long, especially not a friend of mine. Besides, cherie, this will give us more time together before I sail back to France. I leave from Philadelphia, after the parade and reception by Congress."

They would spend the next week traveling, taking their meals in the carriage as they slowly moved towards Philadelphia. Grace was delighted to have Lafayette to travel with, the two of them spending their time talking in English and in French depending on how they felt, playing cards, and occasionally drifting off to sleep in the carriage (Grace more so than Lafayette, who would smile to himself when she closed her eyes "for a moment" and ended up napping for much longer). Ben would come to check up on her every time they stopped to rest their horses or camp out for the night. Even Washington came by to make sure that she was comfortable. It was a long journey, but they were hailed as heroes when they arrived in Philadelphia.


	37. The Return to Setauket

Washington's men arrived in Philadelphia a week after they had set out from Yorktown, making the trip quickly even though they had a lot of soldiers and camp followers moving on foot. Philadelphia greeted them with open arms, the generals going off to speak to Congress and a victory parade being organized in their honor. Grace sat next to Lafayette as they rode into town, waving at the people who had gathered on both sides of the street. There were people playing songs and waving flags, and a band playing near the end of the parade route.

When the parade had reached the tavern that Washington would be staying in, they stopped, Ben hopping down from his horse and coming to give Grace a hug, helping her down from the carriage. Lafayette brought her inside, Grace lying down to rest while Ben went to bring Selah Strong to his wife, Anna having marched into the town with the rest of the camp followers.

Grace was exhausted from the day of traveling and the parade, so she went to take a nap in their rooms up above the tavern while Washington addressed Congress and the soldiers began to pitch their tents on the town green. The officers would be quartered in the tavern, but the vast majority of the soldiers would be staying on the green. Even though they were camping out again, the men were jovial, laughing and joking with each other as they drank, slowly setting up their tents and the luxury that victory afforded them.

The tavern owner's wife brought dinner up for her, smiling and saying, "Congratulations, ma'am. On your husband's victory and on your growing family. He told my husband and I about the child," she explained when Grace raised an eyebrow. "He seems so happy to have a child on the way."

"Thank you," Grace said, taking the basket of food from her. "We are both excited for him. Well, we hope for a boy, anyway."

The woman left her, Grace sitting up and eating while she watched the festivities out of the window. As the sun set, she could see fires beginning to dot the town green as the soldiers cooked dinner, eating much better food than they had gotten in months. Groups of men would head over to the tavern, coming back with barrels of ale that they would split among themselves. People were flocking to the green, hoping to get a look at the officers as they mingled with their men, congratulating them and letting them know what was going to happen next.

Washington would spend a long time in Philadelphia with his generals, sorting out the military budget, ensuring that the soldiers would be paid fairly, and helping to negotiate the real end of the war. Many of his men would be sent home, finally able to see their families again after many years of fighting and traveling all over the colonies, always accompanied by the uncertainty of battle and wondering whether or not they would make it home alive. Others would stay on with Washington as he mounted a campaign to take New York back, a campaign which ultimately ended up being a peaceful takeover of the city. But for now, they were all reveling in their victory in the city that had been one of the centers of the revolution.

It was getting late when Ben came upstairs, giving Grace a kiss and asking how she felt as he hung his coat on a nail by the door. He had been in his formal uniform all day, done up in blue and gold to parade around the town. "I still feel incredibly tired. I think all of the worrying and sleepless nights during the war are catching up with me," she laughed from her spot in bed.

Ben turned to see his wife sitting there, reading a book in the glow of the fire. He could clearly see the slowly growing bump of their first child, a child who would know no other country than the free one he was helping to create. If they could do this right, that child would grow up in a nation that ensured freedom for everyone, and would enjoy all sorts of rights that the British had denied others for so long. "I would think so. All of the days and nights I spent in battle, you spent working and spying and worrying over me, and now that you're carrying a child, it is all hitting you harder than most."

Setting her book down, Grace looked over to watch him getting ready for bed. "Anna and Selah seem to be doing well. I had worried that they had grown apart, especially when she became so well acquainted with Major Hewlett. But it is good to see them getting along. I'm sure they will, with enough time, be able to rekindle the relationship that they once had."

"If we could, I am quite sure they will be able to," Ben smiled, adding another log to the fire before climbing into bed next to her. "Selah has been hard at work in Congress, trying to secure compensation for the soldiers and proper rations for them when they were out in the field. Some of that is rolling in now. He's still working on veterans' pay, and compensation for the widows of men who were killed in battle or presumed to have been killed. And Anna has been helping the ring for years, while balancing her life back in Setauket. They've both worked through so much, I'm sure they can manage this as well."

"Ben?" Grace asked, leaning her head on his shoulder and gazing into the fire. "Have they decided when they will be moving into New York City? If we could be there when we bring freedom to our friends, well, that would be wonderful."

"They have. It will be in a couple of weeks, when Washington is done here, at least for the time being. But I am going to send you back with a few boys from Setauket. You deserve to go home and rest, since you have done so much already, and you do not want to overexert yourself," he told her, Grace looking up at him. "You will be leaving in two days, after Lafayette has sailed for France. I bought you some time so you could properly say goodbye to him. He plans on returning, but there is a lot awaiting him in France."

She nodded, thinking aloud. "When would you be coming back to Setauket, then?"

"I am not entirely sure," he admitted, "but it will be sooner rather than later if I can help it. Washington wants me to be there when we retake New York City, and then we will ride into Setauket."

Everything played out as Ben had described. Lafayette sailed for France the morning that Grace was scheduled to leave. They had breakfast together, and Grace walked with him to the harbor, where his ship, _l'Hermione_ , was waiting. When he turned to her, there was a sadness in his eyes, the marquis saying, "It is difficult to leave the men, but I will miss you the most of all, cherie. You have brought me so much joy over these last years in battle and taught me so much of your language, and I am incredibly honored to have made your acquaintance. It is rare that one finds someone that they can talk to as closely and as frankly as I am able to talk to you. I will write as soon as I reach France, and I will be looking forward to your reply."

"Of course," Grace promised, stepping forward to give him a hug. "You… our conversations helped me to keep my worries at bay, at least for a little while. I am glad I was able to share so many evenings with you. Have a safe trip, Lafayette. And please, try to visit us soon. Not too soon - you have your own family to attend to, after all - but do try to visit."

"I will. You have a safe journey back to Setauket, and take care of that child. Goodbye, cherie." He kissed her on both cheeks, turning and heading for the ship. Grace watched as he boarded before starting to make her way back out of the harbor and towards the tavern. She turned back once, seeing _l'Hermione_ sailing out of the harbor, beginning her journey towards France, where Lafayette would help to lead another revolution, this time overthrowing a king in his own country and establishing a new government in favor of the people.

Grace herself left for Setauket that afternoon, after bidding Washington, Anna, Selah, Caleb, and Ben goodbye. They would see her again soon, they promised, Grace smiling and wishing them good luck in everything that they did. Most of them would move to take New York, Anna and Selah remaining in Philadelphia for the time being. They too would return to Setauket to take back the tavern that DeJong had bought from Anna years before. For now, though, she would be the one leaving.

A group of five men were headed back to Setauket, Oyster Bay, and Brookhaven that afternoon. They had agreed to take Grace back with them, and had put her things in their wagon. As they hitched up their horses, Grace said goodbye to Ben, who held her tightly, reminding her to be careful and to write as soon as she got back to their little town. She promised that she would, hugging and kissing him once more before accepting a soldier's hand and stepping up into the wagon. Ben watched her go until the wagon was out of sight.

The journey was a relatively easy one, but Grace was still tired, spending a great portion of her days napping in the back of the wagon while the men talked about where they wanted to go first when they got home, what their first home-cooked meals would be, and what they would be doing in the future. One of them wanted to go back to school and study the law, one wanted to return to his shop, and another was hoping to return to a quiet life tending to his father's farm. The other two were planning on moving out of New York entirely, starting their lives over in a new state, where they were hoping to find better opportunities.

Grace would have been happy staying in Setauket, raising a family and finally being able to live with Ben in a real house and not having to worry about him being shot or hanged for being a spy. But in the moment, she craved a real bed, a hot meal, and an end to the nausea that had been plaguing her for a while. She had the fleeting thought that she might be coming down with something, but brushed it off as an effect of having to carry a child.

It took a little over four days, but they reached Setauket uneventfully. Where they would have had to go through multiple checkpoints and show their papers to redcoats on duty, they now only had to wave to the lone sentries standing guard, allowing people in and out of the city and down the winding roads that led across Long Island. Grace was dropped off in town, taking her things and heading towards the church. Ben's father, the Reverend Tallmadge, had written her in Philadelphia and offered her a place to stay while Ben was finding them a home. So she made her way to the church, going to the house closest to the white building that was being painted and refurbished after the British had used it for their headquarters for so long.

Knocking on the door, she was greeted by the man who had become her father-in-law. Reverend Tallmadge was a rather stern-looking man with hair a little lighter than Ben's, now peppered with grey after the years of revolution and the toll that they had taken on him. He was well-respected by the town, despite his serious demeanor. However, he had always been fond of Grace, and thought she would be good for Ben. He welcomed her with open arms, taking her valise and offering her a cup of coffee as he showed her to her room.

She would be staying in the room that had once been Ben's, before the war. Reverend Tallmadge had left most of Ben's things in place, just cleaning up a bit when he found out that she would be coming. "How far along are you?" he asked, setting her bag down on the end of the bed and accompanying her back downstairs.

"Three months or so," she smiled, putting a hand to her stomach.

The reverend nodded, proud that he would have a grandchild soon, and that his son had done so well. He wished he could see him again, praying that his son would return safely. Grace, for her part, only prayed that she would feel better soon.


	38. The Greatest Loss of the War

Grace had been living with Reverend Tallmadge for a few weeks when she woke up in pain. She had been a little ill for a while, but it was only a cold, or so she had thought. This, though, was worse than anything she had ever felt. The pain in her stomach was terrible, but she also knew that it was far too early for her child to be ready to be born. Something was wrong, and she had no idea what it could be.

Reverend Tallmadge sent for a midwife, the woman arriving quickly, followed by Mary, of all people. Mary later explained that she and the midwife had been in the same shop when a messenger boy had run in, begging the midwife to, "Hurry to the Reverend's!" before running off to fetch her cart. Mary had wasted no time in dispatching the boy to get her goods and send them home to Whitehall while she accompanied the midwife over to the little house beside the church. There was not a lot that she could do, but she felt better being there. While the midwife went upstairs, Mary sat with Reverend Tallmadge, talking and praying with him, since there was nothing they could do but lean into their faith.

Eventually, Abe and Thomas came over too, after they had found out Mary had rushed to the Reverend's home from the city. All four of them sat together, Mary holding her son on her lap as they speculated about what could be wrong. Thomas had no concept of what was going on, and they all thought that it was for the best that they kept their expressions neutral, and that they did not worry aloud all that much, for his sake. Besides, Abe thought, if they didn't worry too much, perhaps there would not be as much that went wrong. Or so he hoped.

Around noon, Mary and Thomas went to scrounge up some lunch for all of them, the group eating quietly, not wanting to say too much in front of Thomas or invite in bad luck. When they were done and the dishes had been cleared away, Abe took Thomas for a walk. The boy had been getting bored, and without young children in the house, Reverend Tallmadge had no toys to offer him or suitable books to read. Abe himself was getting restless, having nothing to do and not being able to help with much of anything. Mary walked them out before going to wash dishes outside, glancing up at Grace's window a couple of times, hoping that her friend would live to see supper time.

Abe and Thomas had been gone for a little while when the midwife came downstairs, carrying a basket full of things and shaking her head dejectedly. "I'm sorry, Reverend Tallmadge. I did all that I could, but she has lost the child. She is very weak, but she will live. I wish I could have done more. I… I'll bring all of the laundry outside and help you… prepare the… I'm so sorry, Reverend Tallmadge. Mrs. Woodhull."

The reverend thanked her as Mary went upstairs to find Grace, who had already closed her eyes and fallen into a light sleep. The midwife had cleaned everything up wonderfully. If she hadn't known better, she would have thought Grace was just rather ill. Her friend was much more pale than she normally was, and Mary could see the defined tear tracks that had run down her cheeks. Mary sighed, sitting down beside the bed and putting a cool cloth to Grace's forehead. Grace mumbled something in her sleep, but didn't wake up. Perhaps it was better that way, Mary reasoned, so she would not be confronted with the shock of everything that had happened right away.

The midwife came back upstairs for a moment, lowering her voice and instructing Mary to, "Keep her in bed for the rest of the day. She should be able to walk around the room tomorrow or the next day, if she feels up to it. And do not feed her much more than soup and bread for the next few days. Write her husband, if you get the chance. She kept asking for him, and I felt so badly telling her that he isn't here, that I had to say he was still away."

Mary nodded, the midwife departing somberly. She would write to Ben, but just telling him that Grace needed him by her side. She could not bring herself to commit the sad news to writing, because it would make it seem more real. It was a miracle that Grace had lived, but Mary knew that all of the worry, the stress, and the awful conditions in the camps had done this to her. Telling Ben about it, and telling him that she had likely lost the child due to the rough life of the Continental Army camp, would be too much for him.

Grace slept until the evening, when she slowly blinked her eyes open, trying to sit up in bed and immediately regretting it. Mary rushed over to her side, taking her hand and whispering, "It will be alright, just take a deep breath. Stay in bed. I have a fire going, and I can bring you a bit to eat if you wish. But you should not move very much." Her heart broke as Grace put a hand to her stomach, realizing that it had gotten much flatter. "I know," Mary sighed as Grace's eyes began tearing up. "I'm so sorry."

"Ben -"

"Ssh, I've already written him, saying that he should come home and be with you, because you have taken ill," Mary assured her. "I sent the letter out this afternoon. Close your eyes for a little while. You need to rest."

"But Ben, I need to write to him and tell him that... I need him -"

"It's alright, I've told Ben that he needs to hurry up and leave New York to get here. He and General Washington are in York City, remember? He will be here soon, I'm sure."

Grace nodded, closing her eyes again. Within a few minutes, she was sleeping, Mary thankful that, at least in sleep, she didn't have to think about what had happened. Mary sighed, standing at the window and thinking. One of her aunts had had a miscarriage that had left her changed for the rest of her life. She had gone on to have more children, but she was forever changed, no longer the happy-go-lucky woman who had been her mother's best friend and constant companion. While Mary's mother had always been more serious than her sister, the dynamic had changed after that day. Her aunt almost never smiled or laughed, and remained in her mourning clothes for almost ten years.

She turned back to look at her friend, wishing that this hadn't happened. It was the stress of the war, she was sure of it. While she had to deal with Abe's spying, his absence, the danger that he was always in, and the British officers in their town and their home, Grace had had it the worst. Ben had left her months before the war came to Setauket, and it had hurt her, even though she had known that he was going. Grace had to deal with the social fallout of her fiance's disappearance and labeling as a traitor. She also had to worry about him off in battle, since he rapidly rose in the ranks and became more of a high-value target than Abe had ever been. Then Grace had done spy work on her own, in Setauket and in Philadelphia, where she had no one to support her. Even when she began following the Continental Army, she had to worry about Ben, about the gossip in the camp, and about the other officers, who constantly questioned why she was there and why she was allowed to sit in on confidential briefings. And then there was the stress of hiding her swelling stomach from Ben and from the rest of the camp, since she would surely be sent home if anyone noticed. Mary herself felt terrible as she watched Grace sleeping, knowing that ultimately, there was nothing she could do for her but offer to be there.

Realizing that Grace would be sleeping for a while, Mary went downstairs again, telling Abe and Reverend Tallmadge that she was resting. "I would like to stay here," Mary said, picking Thomas up. "If you wish, you can take Thomas home, but I think Grace would do well having another woman here. When she wakes up, she will need someone to explain everything. I'm sorry, Reverend, but she needs someone who can… better understand than you or my husband."

Abe took Thomas in his arms, agreeing wholeheartedly. "I can get him to bed just fine. Do you want to go home with Papa, Sprout?" Thomas nodded, Abe stepping over to give Mary a kiss goodbye. "Say goodnight to your mum. There you go. Mary, please tell her I'm so sorry."

"I will." Mary watched him go, waving goodbye to her son before sitting down with the reverend. Neither one of them felt like eating when it was time for dinner, so Mary went to sit up in Grace's room, waiting for her to wake up as Reverend Tallmadge went down to the churchyard.

The sun was setting when Grace woke again. Mary was the first thing she saw, sitting there and sewing. She took a deep breath, pushing a few strands of hair out of her eyes. "Did Reverend Tallmadge bless him?" she asked in a voice that sounded much better, much more in the present moment than when Mary had first talked to her.

"He has. He and Abe went out this afternoon and…"

"Where is he buried?" Grace bit her lip, her eyes tearing up as she thought of the cold church graveyard, which held so many members of their town. Everyone in Setauket knew someone buried there, no matter how long or short of a time their family had been in town. "Please, tell me, where is he buried?"

Mary came to sit next to her, taking her friend's hand and assuring her that, "He's in the family plot by the church, next to the man who would have been his Uncle Samuel. There is no stone yet, but there is a spot for him with his family. Abe and Reverend Tallmadge dug the grave, and the four of us - Thomas too - said goodbye, and offered our prayers. He had a good Christian burial, and the Reverend oversaw all of it."

"Thank you. I… I just wish Ben were here," Grace sighed, twisting the ring on her finger. "He... not that he would know what to do, or what to say, but he would feel it too. He would know what it's like... he just lost his child too. His son..."

"He will be here soon," Mary promised, offering to get her something to drink. Grace ate and drank a little bit, and then went back to sleep. After a while, Mary went to sleep in the guest room, after making sure that Grace was still sleeping.

Reverend Tallmadge knocked on the door lightly, opening it to see that Grace was still dozing off. He mumbled a quiet prayer and was about to leave when he heard her voice, asking for him to stay. "Reverend? Did you pray for him?"

"I did, my child," he assured her, sitting down in the chair by her bedside. "I prayed for his soul, and for yours, and my son's. For your health and happiness, and for your souls as well. Benjamin will be here shortly. He wrote me a couple of days ago, saying that he and Caleb Brewster will be riding for town by the end of the week. Mary wrote him earlier, asking him to hurry."

Grace was watching him closely as he talked, finally saying, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry that my son… your grandson… I don't know what... I'm so sorry I wasn't able to…"

"Ssh, dear, I know this was not your fault. I know how much pressure you have been under for the last - well, ever since Benjamin left Setauket. I know how you have had to fight to survive and ensure the safety of your family and about the work you did to help the Patriot cause. None of this was your fault, dear. I do not blame you, and neither will my son."


	39. The Culper Ring

Two days later, Grace was able to walk a bit, even though she was still weak. She was sitting in front of the window, having a cup of tea and watching the goings-on of the town when she saw a small group of riders arriving in front of DeJong's tavern. There were seven horses - six men and a woman. They all hopped down, tying their horses up as DeJong came out of the tavern, talking to the tallest of them. Mary rushed out of the tavern, stopping one of the men and grabbing him by the shoulders, talking to him seriously. Grace had gotten to know her outline well, so she knew that it was Mary - otherwise, she had no clue who was outside of the tavern, since it was so far away.

She had her suspicions, as DeJong had almost fallen on his face bowing to the tall man, but she could not be sure. The man who was talking to Mary was gesturing as he spoke, jumping back onto his horse and riding at breakneck speed towards the house. Grace recognized him as he got closer, birth glad to see him and dreading what she was about to have to tell him.

As he tied his horse up near the house, Grace got back into bed, closing her eyes for a moment. He was knocking on the front door, Reverend Tallmadge answering it within seconds. The sound of boots in the front hall was muffled by raised voices that soon dropped into murmurs, which fizzled out into silence. Finally, she could hear familiar footsteps climbing the stairs. There was a soft knock on the door before Ben came in, walking right up to her bed and sitting down on the edge. "Ben, I -"

He cut her off by leaning in for a hug, holding her close and whispering, "I'm sorry. I should have been here. I should have sent you home when I found out. I should have never let you follow the army, or gotten you involved with -"

"Ben, every war has its casualties. If I hadn't been there, who knows how many more we could have lost," she told him. "And the war took its toll on me, on my body, on our son. It was a boy, Ben. We would have had a son -"

"Ssh. Gracie, I love you." He held onto her for a few minutes, finally letting her lean back in bed. But he held onto her hand, rubbing his thumb over hers. "I love you, and I will always love you, even if we never have a family. I'm just thankful that you're healing. And I promise that I will always be here, from now on." There were more voices downstairs now, Grace looking to Ben for an explanation. "Caleb came back too. And General Washington. He wanted to meet with the Culpers. You don't have to come to the dinner if you don't want to."

"I -" Grace was interrupted by a knock on the door, General Washington stepping in.

He came over and kissed her hand, offering his condolences. "Madam, I am deeply sorry for your loss. Your service has helped to ensure our victory, and this is one of the ultimate sacrifices that has been made in honor of our country. I will let you and your husband talk now, but I thought I should first offer my condolences."

"Thank you, General," Grace nodded, Washington heading back downstairs to talk to Caleb and Reverend Tallmadge. She was silent for a moment, looking back at Ben. "I think I will try to go to that dinner, but I highly doubt I will be able to stay for all of it. I've been able to walk a little bit, but sitting there for hours with all of those people may not be good for me."

"You are not required to go," Ben reminded her.

Grace shook her head, telling him that, "This could be the last time most of our ring is able to see General Washington, and the last time that some of us may be together for a while. Anna and Selah are planning on moving away, and the rest of us… well, who knows? I wish Culper Junior could be here but I understand that he does not want to be recognized. And Abigail, we must not forget Abigail. And all of the others who have sacrificed years of their lives to our cause. Ben, I don't think I should miss this, even if I cannot stay for all of it." She had regained her composure, thinking practically for the first time in days. "I'll need your help, though."

Despite all odds, Grace managed to find a dress and make her way down the stairs, stopping to embrace Reverend Tallmadge before getting into the waiting wagon. Ben helped her up, jumping up himself and making sure they moved slowly enough to not jostle Grace too much. She held onto his arm, keeping her balance but not breaking her concentration. When they arrived, Ben got out of the wagon first, helping her down. "How do you feel?"

"Alright, for now. I'm not in that much pain. A couple of glasses of wine, and I should hope I will hardly feel it. It does hurt to walk, though," she admitted, taking his arm as they made their way to the tavern.

Ben nodded, thinking aloud. "If you want, I'm sure we can stay here for the night."

"No, if need be, I'll go lie down for a bit. I should be fine."

They stopped outside of the tavern door, Ben leaning in to kiss her. "Alright, as long as you don't put too much strain on yourself. Tomorrow, we're sleeping in, and we are not thinking about the war at all. General Washington is leaving tonight, and after that, we do not have to think about war, or the camp, or anything else."

"I think I would like that," she said, the corner of her mouth turning up for just a second. That was the most Ben had seen her smile since he returned, but it was to be expected. "I would like that very much."

During dinner, they all discussed their plans for the future, making toasts to the members of the ring who had sacrificed so much, and those who were not there. They were almost finished eating when Caleb announced that he was engaged to a woman named Anne Lewis, who he had met while the army was encamped in Connecticut. There was a toast to her, Ben being the next to make an announcement, telling them that he and Grace would have a small wedding ceremony in his father's church on the 4th of July, since they could not have one in the camp. Of course, the wedding announcement would not use her real name, just in case any members of her family were still looking to find them. But they were all invited - General Washington as well - as they were all close friends and people who had depended on each other for so long.

Washington moved to make a toast to the Culpers, but when Abe requested that they talk about compensation, Grace leaned over, whispering to Ben. "I think I'm going to lie down for a bit, back in the parlor room. I would love to stay, but I'm getting tired."

"I'm surprised you've stayed up for this long. I'm sure it's taking a lot out of you." Ben kissed her cheek, Grace excusing herself and heading for the small parlor that sat behind the private dining room. As she left, she could hear Ben explaining that it was the first time she had been out since they lost the baby, and it was extremely taxing on her.

"That poor woman," Caleb lamented, "goes through all of that, and is still stuck with you, Tallboy. Sorry, that was bad taste. She's one of the strongest women I know, and you should be thankful you've got her."

From where she was reclining on one of the sofas, Grace could still hear the majority of their conversation. Anna was saying something about how she was one of the strongest of all of them, "Since she had to abandon her family, leave her town, and constantly be worrying about you. But never betraying any of it. Grace is one of the people who helped fuel this revolution, and she will never receive enough praise for it."

"Then I must be the one to propose a toast, to Grace Tallmadge, one of the unsung heroes of our revolution, one who has lost so much in defense of our country," Washington's voice said. Grace smiled to herself, thankful for the general. SHe closed her eyes for what felt like a second or two, but was woken up by Ben, who had come to tell her that it was time to go home.

Sleepily, she said goodnight to the others, wishing General Washington a safe journey back home to Mount Vernon. The drive home was a quiet one, Ben and Grace bidding Reverend Tallmadge goodnight when they went upstairs, since he had been waiting up to see that they got home safely. They stopped, saying a prayer with him before heading to their room, where they got ready for bed in silence. As they lay there in the dark, Ben finally spoke. "I hope you realize that no matter what you may think, it wasn't your fault."

"I can't help but think… what if I hadn't left Philadelphia? Or what if I hadn't followed you - what if I had come back to Setauket after I found out that we were going to have a child?" she wondered, Ben putting his arm around her. Grace moved closer, holding onto him as she talked. "What if I had come back, and not had to deal with all of the stress of being in camp? We might still have… we might still have a son."

"Gracie, no," he told her, kissing her forehead. "You would have been worried out of your mind, and everything could have been the same. We'll never really know why, but… did my father tell you about what he dreamt last night?"

"No. I've hardly seen him today. He brought me up breakfast and lunch, but he was busy with the church. He's been good about visiting, but today… the Hester boy fell off of his roof while he was helping his father repair it, and he broke a few bones. His family wanted your father by his side while they stabilized him."

Ben sighed, recounting the story his father had told him when he had first come home. Reverend Tallmadge had been the one to stop his son in the hall, informing him about what had happened and warning him about saying too much to her. "He told me… he told me that he had come up here to check on you and say goodnight, and he said a prayer before he went to bed. He had this dream of Sam… Sam holding a child. He had always wanted a family, and talked about how he wanted a son to raise like our father raised him. When he died, I knew I was the last one to carry on the Tallmadge name, but I was so much more dedicated to the war, and I knew I didn't want my children born in a country that was still owned by King George." He took a deep breath, Grace knowing that his voice was about to break. "But my father had this dream… that he could only explain as Sam and our son, and he knew that they were in Heaven, that our son was in good hands, and that they would be waiting for us."

"He will be," she nodded into his chest, finally allowing herself to cry. "I thought… the war was ending, things were going well, I thought we could start our family and be happy. For once, we could live our lives without looking over our shoulders or worrying about secret codes, and we could live our real lives. This child would bring in a new age of Americans, and would help us live normal lives again…"

"It wasn't the time," Ben said, a few tears running down his cheeks. He had hardly had a chance to process everything all day, but it had finally fully hit him. The child that they had both been so excited for was now gone, buried next to the man who would have been his uncle. Every night since he had found out that Grace was expecting, Ben would fall asleep with thoughts of their future running through his head - a farmhouse and a family that he could come home to, a job that didn't take him too far away or risk his life, and a relatively stable life. Perhaps get a couple of horses, take the family to see their relatives once or twice a year, things like that. But when he walked in the door and saw his father in mourning colors, he knew that those dreams had been dashed for the time being. "Grace, I'm sorry. I know this must hurt you a hundred times more than it hurts me, and I cannot imagine being in any more pain than I am now."

"Ben?" She looked up at him in the dark, studying his eyes and how they were still watery in the moonlight.

"Hmm?"

"Thank you. Thank you for not… not blaming me, as many men do when their wives lose children. Thank you for loving me anyway."

"Grace, I will love you even if this nation is the only child we ever end up having."


	40. Washington's Spies

Grace stood on the front porch of her home, overlooking the gardens that she had been working in all afternoon. It was getting darker out now - Ben would be home soon, and supper was nearly ready. As she looked over the clothesline hanging near the side of the house, she smiled, thinking of how Anna had simply hung up her laundry so many years ago, signalling the beginning of a string of messengers that would ultimately help to win the American Revolution. "William, Henry, Maria! Come on in, it's almost time for dinner!" she called, looking to where three children were playing together in the grass. William, the oldest, led the rest of them in, tumbling up the steps as they ran in a gaggle. "Go upstairs and wash up before supper. Papa will be home soon."

They had just come back down when Ben rode in, bringing his horse to the stables and giving it some hay before heading towards the house. He had taken a job teaching at the local school in Litchfield, a small town in Connecticut where they had moved after the revolution. Scooping his daughter up in his arms, since she was the first to reach him when he opened the door, he smiled, kissing Grace hello. "Have they all been good?"

"Of course they have," she laughed, watching Henry, their middle child, try to hide a rather badly scraped knee he had gotten from falling while he was trying to balance on the fence. "You know, I was thinking about Anna today, Selah and Anna. Well, I had actually gotten a letter from Lafayette that reminded me of our little ring, and then I had the thought that we haven't visited her, Selah, and the rest of their family in a while."

"We can go on Saturday, if they are available. Their home is hardly an hour's journey from here. We ought to visit Abe and Mary out in Setauket soon as well. And my father. We haven't seen him in... I don't remember how long, but it feels like it's been ages. I'll write to them all after supper."

"Remind me, when does Caleb sail back into town?"

"Next week, sometime early, I think. I ran into his Anna while I was out in town today. She's invited us for dinner when he gets back." Ben kissed his daughter's forehead, setting her down again as he talked. "You all haven't seen your Uncle Brewster in a long time."

"Speaking of dinner," Grace said, steering Henry towards the dining room and away from where the cat was lounging, "we ought to eat before everything starts to get cold."

The revolution had officially ended with the Treaty of Paris (which Lafayette had helped to write, as he had told Grace in one of his monthly letters), and William was born a couple of years after, then Henry and Maria with a few years in between them. Grace and Ben did end up having their official wedding ceremony on the 4th of July, almost all of Setauket turning out to see their pariah-turned-hero marry his childhood sweetheart in his father's church. It had brought the community togehter in a way that they hadn't experienced since before the revolution. There had been a town-wide celebration afterwards.

The entire ring had been there, in one way or another. Anna and Selah came to visit and stayed for the weekend, since they had already moved away after selling their tavern. During the reception, Grace saw an unfamiliar man who Abe later whispered had been Culper Junior, their man in New York, their agent working in the middle of an enemy stronghold. He had come to support the happiness of the members of the ring that he had never met, and would likely never meet again. And as they stood, reciting their vows in front of Ben's father, Grace had looked over the audience, noticing three people in disguise in the back of the room. They wore the normal coats and hats of farmers, but had wigs covering their hair, trying to blend in with the crowd. Grace, however, recognized them immediately from all of the time they had spent together, in camp and when they had been encamped in an actual house together.

After the ceremony, she and Ben rushed over to say hello to their wartime friends, who had to leave immediately for fear of being spotted by the general public in spite of their disguises. They had just come to wish them well, they said, and had to go before the town noticed that they were there at all. Colonel Hamilton would return to Manhattan, which was not far away, but Washington had traveled from Mount Vernon, down in Virginia, and Lafayette had sailed over for Europe to visit, disguising himself many times along the way. Lafayette was the only one who could afford to stay, hiding out in Reverend Tallmadge's home for a week or so before moving on to York City and sailing for home. Even though they could not stay for long (after all, Hamilton was busy building what would become the treasury and working on drafts of the Constitution, Washington had his farm to tend to and a government to chip in on, and Lafayette was helping to manage the growing political tension in France), it was good to be able to see them again.

Ben and Grace had moved to Connecticut soon after they were married, and had built their home in the town of Litchfield, where Ben had since begun teaching again, thinking that he wanted, at least for a little while, a profession without the fate of the nation resting on his shoulders. Sometimes he would have to ride back to New York to help with government proposals, but he was glad to be home a lot more and able to be there to see his family grow. He would eventually run for Congress, serving for years in the House of Representatives and helping to build the new nation's government, giving it the strength that he had possessed in the war. Grace remained behind in Litchfield, but Ben would come and visit as often as he could, or she would take the children down to visit him in Washington, D.C., where the seat of government had been relocated after the battle to form the new government had begun.

General Washington never got the retirement that he so desired, instead becoming the first President of the United States and spending the majority of the rest of his life in the district that still bears his name, working to unite what had once been 13 independent colonies. He did, however, tour the states and visit the members of the Culper ring again, thanking them for their selfless service during the war. Without them, the war may not have been won decisively and the nation may not have been founded at all. Washington died in 1799, with Grace and Ben making the somber journey to visit Mount Vernon for his funeral and seeing a few of their old acquaintances from the war.

Colonel Hamilton helped to defend the Constitution in Congress and secure the votes he needed to establish the Department of the Treasury, which he would end up running. He worked tirelessly to build a firm financial foundation for the United States, repaying soldiers for their services and finding solutions to the mounting debt problems that could have torn the nation apart before it had even properly been unified. Despite all of his victories, he died early, getting killed in a politically-motivated duel in New Jersey. Ben and Grace made the trip to Manhattan for the funeral, seeing as how they had spent so much time together with him during the war.

The Marquis de Lafayette only made a publicized return to the United States once more, to tour the states with Washington, but he wrote Grace faithfully until her death. He went back to France and helped to lead a revolution there, then helped to create the new government (once he and his family were released from prison, having been locked up as members of the aristocracy during the worst of the revolution). Although Grace only saw him a handful of times after the war, she was thankful for his letters and the companionship that he had provided her with since the beginning of her involvement in the ring.

Hercules Mulligan, a fringe member of the Culper ring who Grace had the pleasure of meeting only once while she was in York City, was cleared of all suspicions of being a Loyalist sympathizer when Washington publicly dined with him while the Continental Army was retaking New York. His tailoring business flourished after the war, and he became a fairly rich man, owning property and a business in York City that he would later pass on to his children.

Robert Townsend, who Grace would only find out had been serving as Culper Junior during her wedding, stayed in New York too. His investments did fairly well, but he lived a quiet life in the city, never taking credit for his actions during the war. In fact, he was so silent on the matter that most of the ring, Washington included, did not ever know his real identity at all. Ever a humble man, he was only involved in the ring because he felt it was the right thing to do, denying all honors and awards that could have been given to him in favor of a quiet life after the excitement of the war.

Major Hewlett returned to England and left the King's Army altogether, in favor of becoming an astronomer, a passion that he had entertained since he was very young. He married the sister of the famous astronomer Sir William Herschel, and lived with her, happily gazing at the stars and never wanting to return to the colonies that had caused him so much trouble.

Captain Simcoe was able to recover from his war injuries in England, and then took up a post in Canada, where the British still held land, at least for the time being. For all of the fear, death, and destruction he had unleashed during the revolution, he equally dispensed justice in Canada, becoming a far kinder man upon his return to the Americas. He ended slavery in his province when he became the Royal Governor, and was one of the first to extend his hand to help those in need. Grace would read about his exploits sometimes, wondering what had changed in the heart of a man who had once been so cruel and merciless during the revolution.

Abigail and her son Cicero also ended up in Canada, starting a new life in Nova Scotia. They were accompanied by Akinbode, the man who had journeyed across the colonies to find her again. All of them had been freed, and they went on to build a decent life for themselves, starting their own farm in the countryside. Cicero taught Akinbode how to read, the two of them helping to educate other freedmen and women. Eventually, Cicero would help to found one of the first freedmen's schools in their province, extending education to people who had never before had the opportunity to learn, except from their parents and literate friends. The true identity of Agent 355 would be debated for years, but not coming forward ensured that Abigail, Cicero, and Akinbode were safe in their new lives.

Peggy Shippen Arnold reluctantly accompanied her husband to England, where he petitioned the king to be able to return to America and lead another war, insisting that he would be able to lead the army to victory. Arnold was denied his command, and was forever shamed in the colonies and looked down upon in England as a man who had sworn to help them keep the colonies in line and ultimately failed. Grace and Peggy wrote back and forth for years, and were able to visit when Peggy and her children returned to Philadelphia to be with her family, following her husband's death. Peggy would forever mourn the loss of her Major Andre, wishing that she could have made a different decision so many years before. She was happy with her children and her family, but she wished for a different husband, and had always longed for the man she truly loved.

Anna and Selah also moved to Connecticut, where they bought a small home and raised a family. Selah went on to work with a few of his old friends in Congress, tirelessly defending the decisions of President Washington and working day and night to build a government that could stand the test of time. Their family would visit Grace and Ben often, since their homes were just a couple of towns apart. On a clear day, from Anna's house, they could stand there and look across to New York, where they had once all lived, and where everything had since been changing. They liked to imagine that they could see Setauket across the sound, the little village that had shaped their lives. Connecticut treated them well, but they would often visit the Tallmadges or invite them over to visit, longing to bring back a bit of their Setauket memories.

Caleb first dabbled in blacksmithing work, then moved on to farming, but his great love was always the ocean. He ultimately became a captain in the newly-formed Revenue Cutter Service, which patrolled the coasts and inspected ships and their contents. The smuggler had turned into a lawman, and had also settled down (as much as was possible for him) and raised a family. He and his wife did not live far from the Tallmadges and the Strongs, so they would meet up as often as they could, what with their congressional and sailing schedules. More often, their wives would meet up, bringing all of the "cousins" to play while they talked and reminisced.

Abe returned to his farm, Mary and Thomas moving in as soon as the new house had been built. They lived quietly in Setauket for the rest of their lives, raising more children together and selling produce in the local markets and York City. When farming was not paying the bills, Abe worked as a lawyer, having completed his education and found a job as the county clerk. He too had a hand in creating the new government, albeit on a much smaller scale, first helping Setauket transform from a militarily-ruled town to one with its own government under the new United States Constitution. Grace and Ben could visit them less often, but they still found time to write and get together at least once a year, mostly when they went to visit Ben's father, at least before he moved into their home in Connecticut.

Grace and Ben lived out the rest of their lives in Litchfield, raising seven children together. Despite a cooling-off of the hostilities between her and her oldest brother, Grace always maintained her code name in public documents and among people who were not from Setauket. Mary Floyd had married Major Benjamin Tallmadge, according to public records. Mary Floyd Tallmadge had given birth to their children, and would always sign her name as such. But to each other, they were always Grace and Ben, going by their formal names only in public. Ben served a total of 17 years in Congress, fighting for the rights of the young nation. Grace died before he did, after a short but brutal illness with Ben by her side the whole time. Although he remarried, finding a lovely woman who would help him raise the several still-young children that Grace had left behind (and those he had to leave behind himself every time he went to meet with Congress), Ben always maintained that she was his first, and greatest love, the woman who had helped him win the Revolutionary War and who had won him over in the process. All of Litchfield turned out for her funeral, with several guests from Setauket in attendance as well. One heavily disguised man came up to offer his sincerest condolences to Ben after the service, his speech betraying his French accent only slightly. Ben had simply nodded to him, offering one of Grace's oldest friends a private place to stay before he had to sail for home.

The Culper spy ring went quiet after the war, never again passing secret messages through dead-drops and in barns, or in hidden coves in the middle of the night, with British soldiers breathing down their necks at every turn. They never had to worry about being discovered and hanged for their actions again, and they were able to live out the rest of their lives in relative peace. While they were usually able to visit and all meet up at least once a year, things changed for all of them after the war. Many of them never took public credit for their service, and many of them faded into relative obscurity until historians discovered their documents years later. Some of them have yet to be publicly named, with Abigail keeping to her code number of 355 so well that no one has yet to prove her identity, other than those who served faithfully with her. The years of excitement and terror faded into the past, America forever in debt to the spies that saved the nation but who were still humble enough to sacrifice glory for the normal, quiet lives that they had craved for so long.

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A.N.: Not gonna lie, I cried when the last episode ended, even before it was revealed that Abe was writing all of this to Sprout, who had died in battle. I cried, and then I watched the whole show again, and cried again. Writing and doing all of this research has been an amazing experience, and, as the history lover that I am, I'm sure I will always hold the Culpers pretty close to my heart. So this is where I leave you all... it's a bittersweet ending, but I'm glad most of our favorite spies got to live out their lives in peace. Thanks for coming along with me for this journey, for all of your feedback, and for your support.


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